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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Crime & Justice

UK court hears case of Nigerian student killed over fake Rolex debt

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Under investigation
  • A Nigerian student, Khaleed Oladipo, was allegedly stabbed to death by a former friend over a dispute involving a fake Rolex watch.
  • The accused, Harper Dennis, denies murder, claiming the dispute was over a perceived £3,000 debt.
  • The trial heard that Oladipo was on the phone with his girlfriend during the attack and suffered multiple stab wounds.

A UK court is hearing the case of Khaleed Oladipo, a 20-year-old Nigerian student, who was allegedly fatally stabbed by a former friend following a disagreement over money related to a fake Rolex watch. The incident occurred on Oxford Street in Leicester on February 3.

They had previously been friends. But there had been a falling out, seemingly over money that, at the very least, Harper Dennis perceived was owed to him by Khaleed Oladipo.

— Jane Osborne KCProsecutor explaining the background of the relationship between the victim and the accused.

Prosecutor Jane Osborne KC told Leicester Crown Court that the accused, 18-year-old University of Leicester student Harper Dennis, denies murder. The two had initially been friends, meeting through online gaming, but their relationship soured over financial matters. Osborne stated that Dennis believed Oladipo owed him £3,000 after an attempt to sell a fake Rolex, allegedly given to him by Oladipo, failed when a jeweler rejected it.

The court heard that Dennis allegedly confronted Oladipo outside the De Montfort University Innovation Centre. A struggle ensued, during which Oladipo was stabbed multiple times. The prosecution contends that this perceived debt was the motive behind the attack. Oladipo sustained six wounds, including five to his chest, with one penetrating his heart. Astonishingly, he was reportedly still on the phone with his girlfriend during the assault, asking his attacker, "Why did you come up and stab me?"

It would seem the perceived debt was the reason that Harper Dennis attacked Khaleed Oladipo in the street on the 3rd of February.

— Jane Osborne KCProsecutor outlining the alleged motive for the stabbing.

Prosecutors also alleged that Dennis had made threatening calls and sent messages to Oladipo's girlfriend prior to the killing, threatening to make Oladipo "suffer." Dennis, who was arrested shortly after the incident, faces additional charges of possessing a bladed article and failing to provide the PIN for his mobile phone. The trial is ongoing and is expected to last three weeks.

Why did you come up and stab me?

— Khaleed OladipoThe victim's alleged words to his attacker during the stabbing, overheard by his girlfriend on the phone.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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