Nollywood actor Olanrewaju Omiyinka, aka Baba Ijesha, kissed and fondled sensitive parts of the body of the 14-year-old girl in the care of famous comedienne Adekola Adekanya, aka Princess, according to a close-circuit television footage seen by Saturday PUNCH.
Omiyinka was also seen licking the victim's left hand fingers and caressing the minor's legs and thighs with his left hand while performing the act.
Omiyinka was seen lifting the victim's dress and caressing his body in an apparent attempt to sexually arouse the minor.
The minor was dressed in a sleeveless gown and sat on a sofa in Adekanya's home, according to the video. Omiyinka was dressed in a white shirt, blue jeans, and a hat.
Omiyinka, who sat next to the victim on the same sofa as Adekanya, was seen caressing the victim's left arm shortly after Adekanya exited.
Before starting the act, Omiyinka was seen leaving her apartment with three other people, leaving Omiyinka and the victim in the parlour to see off the visitors. Omiyinka was seen by the footage searching the rooms after Adekanya had left the apartment.
Omiyinka kissed the minor's arm, embraced and caressed her body as they sat on the sofa a few minutes later. The victim, however, who was bothered by Omiyinka's advances, easily freed herself from the actor's grasp.
Omiyinka was seen in the video standing with the victim in the parlour, kissing the minor and caressing the victim's buttocks with his two hands.
The survivor, on the other hand, moved away from Omiyinka, who was clinging to her. Omiyinka was later seen caressing the minor's head with both hands.
He was also seen bending the victim to a corner on the sofa and kissing the minor, according to the video. The 14-year-old girl managed to break free from Omiyinka's grasp once more.
The thespian was the one who instigated the sexual advances. In the footage, there were also background voices of people watching the situation in the parlour. There was no part of the footage examined that showed Omiyinka defiling the minor.
Meanwhile, in another video, Omiyinka can be seen apologizing to Adekanya and others after they allegedly caught him sexually assaulting a minor in the parlour.
“Please accept my apologies. Please accept my apologies for offending you. Please forgive me, I beg you, in the name of God. You gave it your all for me, but you don't deserve this.
“I don’t know what went wrong with me, forgive me. If you want to take me away (to Panti), let me just kill myself. I know I have done what is wrong, but please, forgive me,” Omiyinka said in the footage while being interrogated by Adekanya and others.
Reacting to the footage, the chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Arewa, while condemning Omiyinka’s action, said, “So despicable! The act by Yoruba actor, Baba Ijesha who defiled a girl, at 7 years and later at 14 years!! Who knows how many the paedophile could have damaged if he wasn’t caught. I sponsored the violence against person’s law. The penalty is nothing less than 14 years in prison.
“His plea begging on some video I watched should not be acceptable. We should all do all we can to support the girl’s foster mother, Princess, to ensure this case goes to court and fully tried, and the maximum sentence passed on him.”
PUNCH Metro had exclusively reported that a senior officer at the Lagos State Police Command confirmed that a directive had been given for Omiyinka’s release from custody.
The source said a case of indecent assault could only be established against Omiyinka, adding that due to the ongoing strike by members of the Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria, courts had ceased sitting and Omiyinka could not be detained indefinitely without trial.
Following public outcry against the decision to release Omiyinka on bail, celebrities, including Iyabo Ojo, Adekanya, among others, protested at the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Panti, Yaba, against the likely release of the comedian
However, the state Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, while parading some suspects at the command headquarters in the Ikeja area of the state, on Thursday, said Omiyinka would remain in custody pending the legal advice from the Ministry of Justice.
Reacting to the development on Friday, the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Team said it was actively following up on Omiyinka’s case, adding that necessary support had been provided to the complainant.
The statement read in part, “This is to inform members of the public that the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Team is actively following up on the Baba Ijesha’s case, we are also in direct contact with the complainant with a view to providing the necessary support.
“We confirm that the duplicate case file has been forwarded to the Directorate of Public Prosecution for legal advice. For the avoidance of doubt, the following allegations are being considered:
“Sexual Assault by Penetration- S 261 of the Criminal law of Lagos State, 2015 punishable by Life imprisonment. Attempted Sexual Assault by Penetration-S262 of the Criminal law, punishable by 14 years imprisonment. Sexual Assault- S263 of the Criminal Law, punishable by 3 years imprisonment. Indecent treatment of a child- S135 of the Criminal Law punishable by seven years imprisonment.
“We have confidence in Lagos State's criminal justice system, as well as social service systems, to ensure that justice is served in this case and, most importantly, that the victim provides the necessary support on her road to recovery.
“We, therefore, take this opportunity to reaffirm Lagos State Government's zero-tolerance policy against all types of sexual and gender-based violence, as well as our strong commitment to ensuring justice for survivors.”
