Prosecutors withdraw ‘evidence’ against Baba Ijesha as lawyer claims it was obtained under duress
Lawyers were, on Friday, not allowed to tender a confessional statement said to be from embattled Nollywood actor Olanrewaju James Omiyinka, a.k.a. Baba Ijesha.
Baba Ijesha is alleged to have sexually assaulted a teenage girl when she was only seven. The actor is also alleged to have sexually violated the same girl in recent times.
The Nollywood actor faces a six-count charge bordering on indecent treatment of a child, sexual assault, attempted sexual assault by penetration and sexual assault by penetration.
WATCH: Moment Baba Ijesha stepped out of court, refused to talk with media
As the case continued on Friday, a move by prosecutors to submit one of Baba Ijesha’s alleged confessions to the said crime was withdrawn after the actor’s lawyers raised objections.
The defendant’s lawyer claimed that Baba Ijesha was under duress when that statement was made on April 19th. According to the lawyer, the actor was forced to sign the confessional statement. Also, the police officer who wrote the statement on Baba Ijesha’s behalf failed to add his name or signature, the defendant’s lawyer argued.
The prosecuting team then withdrew the statement.
The case is, however, far from over as statements Baba Ijesha allegedly wrote April 20 and April 30 were submitted to the judge who adjourned the case till November 12.
The last time the case was heard, an expert witness told the court that Baba Ijesha’s alleged victim suffered injuries that were consistent with forced penetration. But the Nollywood actor already pleaded ‘not guilty’.
Comedienne-actress, Damilola Adekoya, a.k.a. Princess, who is the foster mother of the minor, was present in court to observe the proceedings.
After Friday’s court proceedings, the media swarmed Baba Ijesha for comments but the embattled actor, after hanging around the court premises for a few minutes, made his way into a waiting car and, without speaking to the media, was driven away by those who accompanied him to the court.
