Boy Who Stood In Front Of Obi’s Car Freed, Lawyer Demands N100m, Discipline Of DPO

By Adesina Soyooye

“Quadri’s case is a painful example of the putrefying corruption, monstrous impunity, and pervasive injustice in the Nigeria Police Force” – Inebehe

After three months of detention at the Kirikiri Prisons, Lagos, and wrongful prosecution, Quadri Alabi, the teenager who sneaked into national consciousness in 2023 when he intercepted, in Lagos, the  campaign convoy of Peter Obi  Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, has been freed by the Court.

Alabi was freed on Thursday, April 17, 2025, by an Apapa Magistrate Court on the advice of the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecutions who looked at his file, and found him innocent of the allegations fabricated against him by the Police and touts in his area to be absolutely false.

And now, for the untidy role the Police played by fabricating an allegation of armed robbery against him, and falsifying his age from 17 years to 18 years just to nail him, Alabi’s Lawyer, Inebehe Effiong, is asking, on his behalf, an apology, the sum of N100m as compensation, and a disciplinary  action agaunst the Divisional Police Officer, Amukoko, the investigating Police Officer, and all those involved in the untidy and ugly business of Alabi’s ordeal.

Alabi’s problem began in 2023 after the iconic picture where he stood in front of  Obi’s Campaign vehicle and focused his innocent eyes on Obi as if his future depended on Obi. A smiling Obi gazed back straight into Alabi’s eyes.

A number of Obi’s fans and loyalists, moved by Alabi’s action, individually, appreciated him with some funds. In the locality where he lives with his parents, Alabi became a target of envy.  They wanted him to share the money. His parents were appealed to by the local leadership to buy a cow and hold a feast for them just to appease them. But two groups of urchins in the area,  according to Inebehe, known as Lege and Baba Waris, not satisfied, kept harassing Alabi, and finally targeted and abducted him on his way from work, and hauled before the Amokoko Police Division.

The report to the Police was that he was involved in street fights, and so, a menace in the neighbourhood. Alabi was locked up, but surprisingly, the Police hauled him before the Court, and changed the reported alleged offence to armed robbery. They locked  charged him with three persons all of whom Alabi had never met before. Worse, they falsified his age from 17 to 18 years. But all that ended Thursday.

In a post on his X page where he announced Alabi’s freedom, Effiong wrote: “At the Court today, the presiding Magistrate, His Honour, A.O. Olorunfemi (Mrs), confirmed that the legal advice issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions ( DPP), of the Ministry of Justice, Lagos State, Dr. Babajide Martins, showed that there was no evidence to substantiate the allegation of armed robbery against Quadri.

“In his legal advice, the DPP recommended the non- prosecution of Quadri. Thus  the presiding Magistrate discharged him and he was accordingly freed.

“Quadri’s case is a painful example  of the putrefying corruption, monstrous impunity, and  pervasive injustice in the Nigeria Police  Force.”

Inibehe is demanding for the sum of N100m, public apology to Quadri Alabi disciplinary action by the Police Leadership against the DPO Amokoku Police Division, the Investigative Police officer, for falsifying a report of even a false allegation of street fight to armed robbery, as well as  falsifying Alabi’s age from 17 years to 18 years.