The family of late Bamidele Adeyemi has urged Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, to reject a plea for executive clemency by Ajayi Olayinka, who is serving a life sentence over the death of their son.
The appeal was contained in a petition dated September 25, 2026, and signed by Bamidele’s sister, Oluwayemisi Adesanya, on behalf of the family.
The petition was submitted to the governor’s office in Abeokuta as the family protested an application seeking Olayinka’s release from custody.
Adeyemi was killed in Abeokuta in 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdown. According to his family, the deceased was serving with a community security committee when he was attacked after refusing to unlawfully reopen a restricted gate in the Onikolobo area.
The family alleged that Olayinka and his accomplices attacked Adeyemi with knives and broken bottles, resulting in injuries that led to his death.
Following investigations by the police, Olayinka and Abayomi Oguntayo were arrested and subsequently prosecuted before the Ogun State High Court.
The defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment in 2023 after entering a plea bargain that saw the original murder charge reduced to voluntary manslaughter.
However, Olayinka later sought the intervention of Governor Abiodun. In a letter dated February 21, 2025, his lawyer asked the governor to exercise his constitutional power of prerogative of mercy and grant the convict a pardon.
The defence counsel reportedly argued that the killing was not premeditated and appealed for Olayinka to be given an opportunity to rebuild his life after demonstrating reform while in custody.
The deceased’s family, however, rejected the argument and accused the defence of attempting to distort the circumstances surrounding Adeyemi’s death.
The family said Adeyemi had been carrying out community responsibilities during a national health emergency when the incident occurred and denied that he provoked the attack.
“We have seen the clemency letter which falsely claims that Bamidele molested and provoked the convict and that the act was not premeditated,” the family stated.
Adesanya further said the killing had devastating consequences for the family, claiming that the grief contributed to serious health challenges suffered by Adeyemi’s parents before their deaths.
She said their mother died in 2025, while their father died in 2026, adding that Adeyemi left behind a widow and two children.
The family also dismissed the argument that Olayinka’s academic achievements while in prison should form the basis for his release.
According to them, the convict obtained a degree from the National Open University of Nigeria during his incarceration, but they maintained that educational rehabilitation could not erase the consequences of the crime.
“Rehabilitation does not rewrite the facts of a brutal murder. Getting a degree in prison does not restore the life that was violently snuffed out,” the family said.
The relatives therefore appealed to Abiodun to uphold the life sentence and reject the application for executive clemency, saying a pardon would deepen their pain and reopen wounds that had yet to heal.
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They also urged the state authorities to consider the wider implications of granting clemency in the case, particularly its effect on public confidence in the justice system.
The Ogun State Ministry of Justice and the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy had not issued a public response to the application as of the time of filing the report.
