The Oyo state government has moved to re-arraign the owner of a hospital who was released from prison custody without an order by the magistrate’s court where he is being prosecuted for abduction and murder of a day-old baby belonging to a Togolese lady
The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Oyo State, Mr. Abiodun Aikomo, has disclosed that the state government has set machinery in motion for the re-arraignment of a ‘doctor’, Oludele Olanrewaju, who was recently arrested for alleged death and disappearance of the body of a day –old baby delivered by a Togolese who resides in Moniya area of Akinyele Local Government Area, Ibadan.
The Nation had published an exclusive story, ‘Disquiet over body of day-old baby dumped in canal by doctor‘ on January 13, 2024, about how Olanrewaju took the baby from the mother, Bose John, who had registered for antenatal care at Olanrewaju’s clinic but was delivered of a baby boy at home before she could be taken to the hospital for delivery.
As the story goes, Olanrewaju was said to have rushed to Bose’s residence and took the new baby with the placenta and his mother away for ‘special care’ in his hospital, amid protestation by neighbours.
Events turned dramatic after Olanrewaju declared the next day that the baby had died and that he had disposed of his body in a bush.
Outraged neighbours and residents confronted the doctor after he failed to name the exact place where the baby’s body was buried.
The medical doctor was dragged to the palace of a traditional ruler of Moniya, Oba James Odeniran, and was subsequently handed over to the police at Moniya divisional headquarters.
He was said to have explained during interrogation that the corpse of the baby would emit an offensive odour if he had kept it in the hospital.
The case was transferred from the Moniya Divisional Police Headquarters to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) of Oyo State Police Command where the embattled ‘doctor’ was detained.
Detectives led Olanrewaju to a location in the forest where he claimed to have buried the baby but found nothing at the spot where he claimed to have interred the baby’s body.
He was subsequently arraigned by the police before a Magistrate’s Family Court at Iyaganku, Ibadan on a three-count charge of impersonation, abduction and murder. The police prosecutor, Inspector Gbemisola Adedeji, told the court that Olanrewaju committed the offence on December 28, 2023 at His Mercy Hospital, Akinyele, Ibadan.
Adedeji said Olanrewaju was a “fake doctor” and that he took the baby boy delivered from his mother without her consent and drowned him in a canal.
According to the police prosecutor, the offences contravened the Criminal Codes of Oyo State (2000) and were punishable with three years imprisonment for impersonation, 14 years for abduction and death sentence for murder.
The presiding magistrate asked that the case file be forwarded to the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) of the Oyo State Ministry of Justice for legal advice on whether the case should proceed. Magistrate Ogunkanmi adjourned the matter to March 4 for mention, while Olanrewaju was asked to be remanded in prison custody.
The case was adjourned to April 27 but Olanrewaju was not brought to the court, fuelling speculations about his whereabouts while the case was further adjourned to May 27.
Revelations about the suspect’s controversial release
Olanrewaju was later said to have been released and sighted in town. At the same time, he appeared in court on May 27 without being brought by operatives of the Correctional Centre in their vehicle.
Subsequently, The Nation raised the alarm on June 15, 2024, in a report ‘Furore over release of murder suspect from prison without court order‘ about Olanrewaju’s release from custody of the correctional centre, while the order for his remand had not been vacated by the Magistrate’s Court where his trial was ongoing. The case was adjourned to July 8 and September 2, pending the DPP’s legal advice that had not come as at press time.
Moved by the development, The Nation reached out to the Oyo State Police Command through the spokesman, Adewale Osifeso, a Superintendent of Police, who denied knowledge of the Police complicity in the release of the suspect.
According to Osifeso, the Police handed off the suspect when the Magistrate’s Court ordered that he be remanded in custody at the Correctional Centre. He added that whatever transpired thereafter was no more the business of the Police, even though the matter was being prosecuted by the Police at the Magistrate’s Court.
Checks at the Correctional Centre in Ibadan revealed that the suspect was admitted to the correctional facility for remand on January 8, 2024, and released on April 19, 2024, before the initial adjournment day on May 27 at the Magistrate’s Court.
Further checks by The Nation revealed that Olanrewaju was granted bail by a Fiat State High Court 1, Ibadan, which led to his release from the custody of the Correctional facility on April 19, 2024. He was admitted into custody on January 8, 2024, by the order of a Chief Magistrate Court, Iyaganku.
The magistrate’s court said it was not aware of the suspect’s release when the matter came up on September 2.
Govt finally slams new suit against suspect
However, Aikomo, who also read the newspaper report, told The Nation that the moves to re-arraign Olanrewaju at a superior court followed the discovery that he secured his controversial freedom through a discreet application for bail at a state High Court in Ibadan, amid his ongoing trial by the police at the Magistrate’s Court.
Aikomo’s text message forwarded to The Nation quoted the Director of Public Prosecution as saying that a suit had been prepared and filed at the state High Court for prosecution.
The message reads in part: “The new suit number: i/58c/2024, State vs Oludele Olanrewaju, has been filed at the court. I will bring the (case) file to you as soon as it is retrieved from the registry…” Olanrewaju’s offence, according to the new suit was contrary to Section 371 of the Criminal Code. As of press time, the case was yet to be assigned to a judge.
Victim goes into hiding
Meanwhile, Bose, the victim and mother of the baby, has gone into hiding after Olanrewaju’s return to the Moniya area of Akinyele Local Government Area of Ibadan, where he is still running His Mercy Hospital, amid public outcry.
According to a close family member and chairman of the Togolese community in the area, Mr. Simare Worou Razakou, Bose has since been moved out of Moniya to safety somewhere in Oyo State.
He explained that Bose could not stand or cope with the trauma of the incident and the shocking release of the suspect. Hence, she was relocated to an undisclosed town in the State for safety and rehabilitation.
“The unfortunate incident has taken a toll on Bose’s health so much that she was beginning to display an unpleasant attitude and her health deteriorated.
“Her condition worsened when news got to town that Olanrewaju had been released and she sensed that she had lost the chance to get justice and feared for her life. Thus, we had to relocate her to another community for safety.
“Justice is key in this matter. Bose has lost her baby and her sanity and safety are at stake.
“The only thing that could give her relative closure is justice and the state authorities should ensure that justice is served in this matter.”
The Nation
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