Boy Who Stood in Front of Peter Obi’s Convoy Regains Freedom

News Update

After enduring months of unjust incarceration, the 17-year-old Master Quadri Yusuf Alabi, the teenager who captured national attention during the 2023 elections when he stood boldly in front of the convoy of Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, has finally regained his freedom.

Alabi was discharged and released today, April 17, 2025, by a Lagos Magistrate Court following a legal advice from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), which found no evidence linking him to the crime for which he was accused.

Quadri’s ordeal began on January 26, 2025, when he was forcibly abducted near his home in Amukoko, Ajeromi-Ifelodun Local Government Area by two notorious street figures, identified as “Lege” and “Baba Waris.”

According to his legal team, the teenager had become a target of harassment from community thugs who felt entitled to a share of the goodwill and donations he received during and after the 2023 elections.

The family alleged that even the local Baale (community head) pressured them to appease these individuals with a cow, rice, and a feast, a demand they could not fulfill.

After the abduction, the suspects dragged Quadri to the Amukoko Police Division (Pako Police Station), where officers initially booked him for a mere street fight.

However, in a shocking turn of events, police later accused him of armed robbery and secured a remand order from an Apapa Magistrate Court, sending him to the Kirikiri Medium Security Custodial Centre. Even more disturbingly, Quadri was falsely linked to four adult strangers, and his age was deliberately falsified as 18 to avoid scrutiny.

It was not until human rights advocate and Co-founder of Ray of Hope Prison Outreach, Ms. Hassana Nurudeen, brought the case to public attention that the wheels of justice began to turn.

Quadri’s mother sought help from renowned human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong, who immediately took up the matter.

Delivering her ruling today, Magistrate A. O. Olorunfemi (Mrs.) confirmed that the DPP, Dr. Babajide Martins, had found no grounds to prosecute Quadri. The court then ordered his immediate release.

Reacting to the court’s decision, Mr. Effiong called for the immediate removal and disciplinary trial of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Amukoko Division and the Investigating Police Officer (IPO), identified as Inspector Odigbe Samuel, as well as other officers implicated in what he described as a “sinister, oppressive, and corrupt frame-up.”

Effiong further demanded a public apology and N100 million compensation from the Nigeria Police Force, failing which legal proceedings will commence.

“This case underscores the depth of impunity, corruption, and lawlessness that continues to plague the Nigeria Police Force,” he stated.

“Quadri is free today, but there are countless others across the country suffering similar injustice because of a broken and unaccountable system.”

The case has reignited national conversations about Police reform, youth rights, and the urgent need for systemic accountability within Nigeria’s justice system.