Esther Oladeinde wants her brother out of jail. The brother Lekan Oladeinde was convicted and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment by an Ogun State High Court in February 2026 for Rape committed against two minors.
Esther alleged that her brother was railroaded into prison since , according to her due process was not followed. She made a video calling for justice. The video went viral and generated some controversy.
This led the Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General of Ogun State, Oluwasina Ogungbade SAN, to personally investigate the process and on Tuesday March 24 ,2026 , Akingbade alongside senior legal officers of the State met with Esther to deliver the outcome of their inquiry.
UPDATE ON ALLEGED DENIAL OF DUE PROCESS TO CONVICTED PERSON
I have just met, alongside the Solicitor General and Permanent Secretary, Mr Olusegun Olaotan and the Director Public Prosecutions, Mrs Kadiri, with , the lady who made a video alleging that her brother was denied due process before being convicted and sentenced for rape. In her words, he did not commit the crimes he was accused of and was not allowed to defend himself by the trial judge. She honoured my invitation for a meeting and in the course of that meeting I revealed the following facts to her which in turn were based upon my study of the case file:
1. Her brother, Lekan Oladeinde was in December 2020, accused of defiling two children aged 7 and 9 years respectively.
2. At trial, the Prosecution called three witnesses to wit, one of the victims, the victim’s mother and the Police Investigator. Four exhibits were also tendered including the medical report on the victim which revealed a missing hymen and the confessional statement of the defendant.
3. In his defense, the defendant testified as DW1 and called two other witnesses who testified as DW2 and DW3 respectively. The defendant was represented throughout by counsel of his choice.
4. At the end of trial, both the Prosecution and defense addressed the court after which Judgment was delivered on the 25th February 2026 convicting the defendant and sentencing him to a term of 15 years imprisonment.
The above show without a doubt that the allegation that the convict was denied due process and simply railroaded to prison is not true. The Confessional statement of the convict, though retracted at trial, also show that the claim of his innocence, particularly in the light of his conviction, is also unfounded.
In all, I explained to Miss Oladeinde how the legal system works. I expressed my understanding of her desire to help her brother. I however counseled that accepting the reality of his situation and the court’s finding, as they exist today until set aside, would be the very first step towards the exercise of any legitimate move in his favour. A denial of the obvious would not serve his means in any respect. I also expressed the hope that he would at the end of it all, use the opportunity of this experience to turn his life around. My overall observation of Miss Oladeinde is of one that acted, out of desperation, in a manner she considered best suited to help her brother albeit without a full knowledge or understanding of the real state of affairs. It is my hope that she will also come away with one or two lessons from this experience.
I thank everyone who has followed this matter. I assure you that we remain committed to transparency in justice administration in Ogun State and will continue to do all within our means to ensure that not only is justice done, but that it is also seen to be done.
