Appeal Court Upholds Conviction of Former Shangisha Baale for Staging Abduction

The Court of Appeal in Lagos has affirmed the conviction of Mutiu Ogundare, the dethroned Baale of Shangisha in Magodo, for orchestrating a fake abduction.

The initial ruling, delivered by Justice Hakeem Oshodi of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja on September 27, 2022, sentenced Ogundare to 15 years in prison. Unsatisfied with the decision, Ogundare appealed. Justice Paul Bassi, leading a three-judge panel, upheld the convictions on counts one and two but overturned the conviction on count three, reducing the total sentence to 12 years—10 years for the first count and 2 years for the second. The conviction on the third count, related to false representation, was overturned.

The decision was supported by Justices Abdullahi Bayero and Folashade Ojo. Ogundare was initially remanded in Kirikiri Prison on July 16, 2017, following accusations of staging his own kidnapping.

Ogundare, his wife Abolanle, and his brother Opeyemi Mohammed were charged with conspiracy, breach of peace, and fake kidnapping by the Lagos State Government. On June 15, 2022, Justice Oshodi convicted Ogundare and Opeyemi Mohammed but acquitted Abolanle, citing insufficient evidence against her.

During sentencing, Ogundare’s counsel, Olarewaju Ajanaku, and Dr. Olayinka Owoeye, the second defence counsel, pleaded for leniency, highlighting Ogundare’s remorse and intention to reform. However, state prosecutor Jubril Kareem urged the court to impose a sentence commensurate with the severity of the crime.

Justice Oshodi noted the lack of genuine remorse from the convicts and their attempts to evade justice, emphasizing the need for a deterrent sentence.

Ogundare’s fake kidnapping occurred on July 5, 2017, when he claimed to have been abducted by three men along CMD Road in Ikosi-Isheri Local Council Development Area. He later admitted that the abduction was staged to blackmail the state government. Following the incident, former Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode ordered Ogundare’s removal as Baale of Shangisha.