The Lagos State Government has debunked claims that Nollywood actor Olanrewaju James, popularly known as Baba Ijesha, was exonerated of sexual assault by the Court of Appeal.
Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro (SAN), dismissed the reports as false and misleading during a press briefing in Lagos on Sunday. He called out a social media post by actor Yomi Fabiyi, which suggested that Baba Ijesha was “cleared” of defiling a minor and that his case was a “charade.”
Pedro described the claim as a “complete distortion” of the legal proceedings and clarified that the Court of Appeal only set aside convictions relating to older allegations from 2013–2014, not the core charges for which the actor was jailed.
According to him, Baba Ijesha was convicted by the Lagos High Court on July 14, 2022, for sexual assault and indecent treatment of a child, and sentenced to five and three years respectively, to run concurrently.
The AG stated that:
- On June 28, 2024, the Court of Appeal upheld his conviction for the 2021 assault charges.
- His appeal to the Supreme Court was struck out on May 29, 2025, for being incompetent.
- A follow-up motion for leave to file a fresh appeal was dismissed on October 9, 2025.
Pedro stressed that Baba Ijesha was not discharged or acquitted but was released after completing his court-affirmed prison sentence.
He warned that spreading false reports about the judicial outcome could attract legal consequences under Section 39 of the Lagos Criminal Law, which prohibits publication of false news intended to cause fear or alarm.
He further assured that the state remains committed to child protection, justice enforcement, and public accountability.
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