Published 10th Aug, 2022

By Emmanuel Uti

Headfort Foundation, a prison reform initiative, has detailed how John Akapo, a resident of Abeokuta, Ogun State, spent four months in Ibara prison for someone else’s crime.

In a Twitter thread on August 7, the foundation said Akapo was in an Abeokuta community to see his girlfriend when a security guard arrested him.

Headfort said Akapo had worked at a poultry farm in the community but was banished after he stole two crates of eggs.

“But immediately a member of the community vigilante sighted him, they arrested him and took him to the police station for a crime that occurred while he was absent,” Headfort said.

The foundation said that Akapo was charged to court on April 12 for the offence of breaking and entering.

John worked at a poultry farm in Abeokuta where he stole two crates of eggs and because of that, he was sent out of the community.

On the 6th of April, 2022, he came back to the community to see his girlfriend. Immediately he was sighted by a member of the community vigilante, pic.twitter.com/JEHxsAHI3g
— Headfort Foundation for Justice (@HeadfortF) August 7, 2022

The court granted him bail but he could not perfect it because of financial constraints, Headfort stated.

“On the same day of his arraignment, he met our lawyer at our Abeokuta mobile office donated by @OSA_foundation, and his brief was taken,” said Headfort.

The foundation said it entered a defence of no case submission on Akapo’s behalf.

“The court ruled in his favour and discharged him on August 4, 2022. Sadly, he spent 4 months in custody before regaining his freedom,” Headfort said.

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