A 64-year-old Nigerian man pursues justice after being imprisoned since 1999 and given a D+ath sentence in 2003 for allegedly repairing a stolen generator.
Since 1999, Kolawe Oladeji, a 64-year-old Nigerian man, has been incarcerated after being found guilty of possessing a stolen generator in Ogun State and given a d+ath sentence.
After being held in Ogun, he was later moved to Lagos’ Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison.
In an audio recording that SaharaReporters was able to obtain, Kolawole described how he was arrested on October 30, 1999, after someone brought a purportedly stolen generator to his workshop for repair. Along with Sunday Oloyede, Ogbona Igbojionu, and Segun Ajibade, he was charged and given a hanging sentence in 2003. He was given a d+ath sentence on January 14, 2003.
In 2016, former Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun released Segun Ajibade, whom Kolawole said was the true culprit. Kolawole and two other people, though, are still on death row.
“I was imprisoned for a crime I did not commit in 1999. My job is to fix generators. After I fixed one that someone had brought to me, someone else picked it up. He claimed that he had nothing to do with any theft. The fact that the real offender had connections led to his release. Nobody has come for me since then. While I have been here, both my wife and mother have d+ed.
The plight of inmates who are held for years without a fair review of their cases is brought to light by Kolawole’s experience. Even after the accused criminal was released from prison, Kolawole is still seeking justice after serving more than 20 years.
