Nigerian Man Declared Wanted In US For Allegedly Murdering His Child

The United States government has declared a Nigerian, Olalekan Abimbola Olawusi wanted for allegedly killing his child, The Punch newspaper reports.

The US authorities said the alleged murderer was declared wanted after fleeing the country to avoid facing trial for his crime.

According to the details provided by the Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal, Don Freeman, and obtained from the agency’s website on Monday, Olawusi committed the alleged crime in 2017 after inflicting serious body injury on his child, which later led to his death few months after.

The US FBI said the alleged offender was arrested immediately after committing the crime, taken to court, after which he was released to allow for further investigations.

But not long after, Olawusi fled the US and has not been found since then to answer to his alleged crime.

As a result, the US government has now placed a $25, 000 bounty on his head for anyone who can assist the police to fish him out.

The US government has also placed him on the list of the 15 most wanted persons in the country.

Providing further details about the case, Freeman noted that Olawusi, who lived in Rhodes Island, US, was arraigned on two counts bordering on first-degree murder caused by inflicting bodily injury to a child and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.

He added that the incident occurred on April 3, 2017, after police operatives and firefighters found the three-month-old child and rescued him at the hospital where it was discovered that the child had suffered injuries in 18 parts of his body. The discovery was said to have led to the arrest of Olawusi.

Upon his arrest, Olawusi was charged in court on April 20, 2017, but his whereabouts became unknown after he was released the same day while the trial was pending.

Freeman added that the infant died six months after being hospitalised as a result of the injuries he had allegedly sustained from his father’s abuse which prompted the prosecuting department to include a murder charge in the ongoing trial.

Freeman said, “A man wanted in Rhode Island on charges of murder, inflicting serious bodily injury to a child and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution has been added to the U.S. Marshals Service 15 Most Wanted fugitives list with an up to $25,000 reward being offered for information leading to his arrest.

“Olalekan Abimbola Olawusi, 48, was charged in Providence with first-degree murder and two counts of inflicting serious bodily injury to a child after Providence Police and Fire personnel found his three-month-old son bleeding from the mouth and nose at a residence on April 3, 2017.

“The child was transported to the hospital in cardiac arrest and needed to be resuscitated to regain a pulse. An examination at the hospital noted 18 injuries at various stages of healing, indicating a pattern of long-term abuse. These injuries included a skull fracture, subdural hematoma, significant brain injury, and fractures of the child’s ribs, clavicle, legs and arms. He was placed on life support but died six months later.

“Providence police arrested and charged Olawusi on April 20, 2017, with first-degree child abuse. He was released the same day and subsequently fled. The murder charge was added following the infant’s death on October 31, 2017.”