US Citizen Vows to Prosecute Man for Allegedly Vandalising Family’s Property in Edo
TheTalk.NG journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering public journalism.
Etsako, Edo state – A Nigerian-American, Timothy Sule, the eldest son of the late philanthropist Chief Y. A. Sule, has vowed to drag one Yakubu Inu-Umoru to court over the alleged vandalisation of his father’s property.
According to information gathered by TheTalk.NG on Sunday, April 21, the property in question is a five-bedroom duplex located on Warake road in Auchi, in Etsako West local government area (LGA) in Edo state.
US citizen determined to prosecute man for vandalising family’s property in EdoSource: Original
The property is said to belong to the late Y. A. Sule and was given on lease to Inu-Umoru by the younger Sule in 2020.
US-based Sule is a psychologist and business magnate.
It was gathered that a clause in the Lease Agreement had allegedly mandated Inu-Umoru to carry out a general renovation of the property to make it more befitting for habitation.
To achieve this, the lessor, Timothy Sule, reportedly conceded over 70 percent of the rental fee to Inu-Umoru.
However, trouble started when Sule, through his lawyers, notified Inu-Umoru of the various breaches in the lease agreement between them and therefore decided to take over the full renovation of the property by himself.
It was also gathered that a non-renewal of lease memo was sent to Inu-Umoru, who got angry over Sule’s decision to take over the property for renovation.
The development was said to have annoyed Inu-Umoru, who allegedly threatened to destroy the property on his departure at the expiration of the lease for daring to evict him.
Sule said:
“He has indeed carried out his threat by vandalising the perimeter fence, interlocking tiles, the septic (sewage) tank, the fence, electrical wiring and other parts of the building in flagrant disregard of the admonition from neighbours and passersby, boasting that he has all the contacts in Edo and Abuja to deal with anyone including me.”
Furthermore, the Nigerian-American disclosed that he has initiated moves aimed at alerting the US Embassy in Nigeria on the alleged threat to life and property by Inu-Umoru.
Edo lease agreement dispute: Inu-Umoru seeks compensation
However, reacting through a letter titled ‘Dispute regarding lease agreement between Timothy A. Sule and Yakubu Inu-Umoru, signed by S. K. Mokidi, dated March 6, 2024’, Inu-Umoru demanded compensation of N3 million for the improvements he made to the property.
The letter partly reads:
“It is crucial to recall that our client undertook extensive renovations upon entering the lease agreement, with your client. These renovations included replacing the roof with aluminium sheet, tiling the floor, and carrying out POP work.
“Additionally, our client worked on the ground floor to adapt the premises for the club business.”
Source: TheTalk.NG
