A 37-year-old woman, Deborah Ayeni, has been sentenced to 14 years in prison by an Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti for stealing a newborn baby. The court sentenced Ayeni in absentia and subsequently declared her a fugitive after her sureties failed to produce her in court during the trial. Justice Lekan Olatawura, who delivered the judgement, ordered the court registrar to forward copies of the judgement and a letter to the Comptroller-General of Customs, the Nigeria Police and the media, declaring Ayeni wanted for apprehension. He ruled that the sentence would commence immediately upon her arrest. The judge also sentenced Ayeni's two sureties, including her father, Mr Babatope Ebenezer Ayeni, to six months in prison each for failing to produce her in court and pay the required recognisance fees, in line with the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Ekiti State, 2014 (as amended).
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