By Ado Oyeyemi
The family of a teenager, Imole Ilesanmi, has raised the alarm over her whereabouts after she reportedly went missing in the Agbado area of Ogun State.
Imole was said to have left her family home around 3pm on Sunday, September 20, 2026, and had not returned as of Sunday, eight days after she was last seen.
Speaking with PUNCH Metro, Imole’s father said the teenager was at home when he asked her to prepare food for him.
He said the family later learnt that she intended to visit a cleric in the Popóshóla area after cooking.
“She went missing on Sunday around 3pm. She was at home and I asked her to cook for me. The information we got was that she said she wanted to go and see an Alfa in that area after cooking. Since then, we have not heard from her.
“We have been calling her line. It was ringing from Sunday until Monday morning, but nobody answered. Her friends and some people we asked also said she mentioned that she was going towards that area,” he said.
The father said the disappearance had been reported at the Agbado Police Station, adding that the cleric was initially arrested but later released.
He expressed concern over the cleric’s release, saying the family believed he might have information that could help establish Imole’s whereabouts.
According to him, several people directed the family to the area where the cleric lived, while some residents also claimed to have seen Imole in the neighbourhood.
However, the cleric, identified simply as Alfa, denied knowing the teenager’s whereabouts, saying she did not visit his residence on the day she disappeared.
“She did not say she wanted to come to my place. She said she was going to Popóshóla. Even her friend said she was going to Popóshóla, not my house.
“She used to come to my place before, but I did not see her on that Sunday. I also did not see her on Monday when they said she was seen around the neighbourhood,” he said.
Alfa said he was detained for a day and that a police officer stayed with him at his residence throughout Sunday before accompanying him to the station.
“They detained me for one day. There was a police officer with me at my house throughout that Sunday. He was also the person who went with me to the station.
“He can testify that she was not at my place throughout that day. I am ready to provide his contact details so that he can confirm what happened,” he said.
Speaking on the search for her, Imole’s sister, Ayomide Ilesanmi, said the family had been unable to determine what happened after the teenager was last seen.
“The neighbour said they saw her walking up and down. She was restless and kept walking, and they told her to rest. Later, they did not hear from her again.
“We were told that she went to Popóshóla and that she branched at her friend’s place.
We waited for her to come back, but minutes turned to hours and then days. It has been eight days and she has still not come back,” she said.
Ayomide added that the family had visited churches and a mosque to pray for Imole’s safe return.
She said the family had also been inundated with rumours since they began circulating Imole’s photographs and details on social media.
“Since we started posting everywhere, different rumours have been coming.
Some people would say they found her body or that they found something concerning her, but when we checked, we discovered that the information was fake.
“It has been difficult for us because we keep receiving different information and we don’t know which one to believe,” she said.
The Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Babaseyi Oluseyi, had yet to respond to enquiries about the incident as of the time of filing this report.
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However, a senior police officer familiar with the case, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak with the media, confirmed the report but declined to provide further details.
