Metro

Nigerian Woman In UK On Trial For Starving Son To Death

Published

3 years ago

April 28, 2023

A Nigerian woman, Olabisi Abubakar, 42, from Cardiff, is facing trial in the United Kingdom for two counts of manslaughter and child cruelty relating to the death of her three-year-old son, Taiwo Abubakar.

Olabisi, accused of killing her three-year-old son through religious fasting, told police she had “locked herself away” during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Mail Online.

She is being tried before the Cardiff Crown Court where it was revealed that police forced entry to her flat in the Cathays area on June 29, 2020 after a friend raised concerns for her welfare.

Olabisi, who was thin, malnourished and dehydrated, was found lying on a sofa bed next to the body of her son, Taiwo.

Cardiff Crown Court heard Taiwo weighed 9.8 kilos (22 pounds), with pathologist Dr Stephen Leadbetter finding his death was caused by malnutrition and dehydration.

The court heard Olabisi was sectioned on June 30, 2020 and has remained detained in hospital, where she is being treated for paranoid schizophrenia, Mail Online says.

The prosecutor, Peter Donnison, told the court that Olabisi was deemed fit for police interview in October 2020 and was interviewed by officers on eight occasions.

In one interview, according to Donnison, Olabisi described “the effect on her of the pressures of not having help, fearing coronavirus for herself and her child, and her immigration status.”

Mr Donnison said: “She described them as depressing. She said she was a religious woman and prayed to God and believed he had heard her and answered prayers and kept them safe.

“She had been taking her child out daily but she had to stop doing that due to the coronavirus. She described herself as locking herself away due to the coronavirus and her neighbour.”

Olabisi had been having issues with a neighbour at the property she was living at in Cwmdare Street, Cardiff, and was an asylum seeker.

The court was told that she is a devout Pentecostal Christian and fasts as part of her faith.

Prosecutors allege that Olabisi caused her young son to fast of both food and water along with her, due to fears over the coronavirus pandemic and personal pressures, according to Mail Online.

However, in police interviews Olabisi repeatedly denied this and said children should not fast until the age of 12.

Mr Donnison said: “She said she would dry fast when she wanted to speak to God and hear something from God.

“She said her child did not fast, he did eat, and she gave him food to eat.”

She told police she had fallen asleep on June 26 and believed she had gone to heaven before being brought back to life when her neighbour and police officers arrived.

Donnison said: “Olabisi Abubakar said she couldn’t explain what happened to her. She was asleep on the bed and that is what she remembered last. She said she believed she was being punished by God.”

In a police interview, Olabisi said: “I saw myself among the dead in heaven. I was saying, ‘I don’t want to die’. Then I saw the angels of God and they brought me back to life.”

The court heard a series of facts agreed by the prosecution and defence in the trial, read by Mr Donnison.

This included evidence that health visitors saw Olabisi and Taiwo before the pandemic and had no concerns, including in relation to her religion and religious practices.

They were not seen by healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 lockdown.

In February 2020, a police officer was called to a noise complaint by Olabisi’s neighbour and attended her room, which he described as “clean and warm”.

Taiwo was seen playing loudly and appeared “very energetic” and healthy, Mr Donnison said.

Police searched the property after Taiwo’s body was discovered on June 29 and found a note on food in a fridge, stating: “Do not touch anything, whooping cough, virus, save yourself.”

Olabisi wrote a series of notes while in an ambulance and in hospital, stating she was “very hungry” and “can’t stand up” as well that Taiwo was dead, Mail Online reports.

Olabisi told a police officer in hospital: “I don’t eat, I can’t cook, because of coronavirus I can’t go and buy food.”

Doctors found Olabisi was suffering delusions and she was sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1983 on June 30 2020, with detention in hospital still ongoing for her to receive treatment.

The jury has been told it is not disputed that Olabisi, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and moved to London in 2011, neglected her son but the issue is her state of mind at the time, according to Mail Online.

As Olabisi’s trial continues, the court will have to decide whether Olabisi may have been insane, which would make her not guilty of charges against her by reason of insanity.

Caroline Rees KC is expected to open the defence case for Olabisi, who denies manslaughter and two counts of child cruelty, on Thursday afternoon.

Metro

Sowore Arraigned Over Alleged Cybercrime

Published

20 hours ago

December 3, 2025

Editor

The Department of State Services (DSS) on Tuesday arraigned politician and online publisher Omoyele Sowore before the Federal High Court in Abuja over alleged cybercrime offences.

Sowore, a former presidential candidate, faced a five-count charge accusing him of defaming President Bola Tinubu by calling him a criminal in posts on X and Facebook. The DSS claims that his actions violate the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024, as well as the Criminal Code Act.

At the hearing, Justice Mohammed Umar granted Sowore bail on self-recognition. However, the court imposed strict conditions, barring him from making any statements capable of inciting the public or undermining national security. The judge warned that any violation of these conditions would lead to immediate revocation of his bail.

Justice Umar noted that Sowore, who previously contested for the presidency, was already under bail conditions with his international passport held by the court. He said these factors justified granting him bail without a monetary surety.

The arraignment on Tuesday came after two earlier attempts were unsuccessful. DSS counsel, Akinolu Kehinde (SAN), attributed the delays to legal obstacles introduced by Sowore’s defence team.

Sowore pleaded not guilty to all charges. His lawyer, Marshall Abubakar, also filed a fresh bail application during the proceedings, which the court considered before ruling.

Two other defendants — X Inc. (formerly Twitter) and Meta (Facebook) Inc. — are listed in the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025. The DSS claims that these companies aided Sowore in publishing the posts allegedly containing defamatory statements against the president.

The case is the latest in a series of legal battles involving Sowore, who has in the past faced arrests and charges over his activism and online publications.

The Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024, under which Sowore was charged, criminalises the online publication of false statements that can harm individuals or public institutions. The law also empowers the government to hold social media companies accountable if they facilitate the spread of such content.

Sowore’s arraignment has drawn reactions on social media, with supporters describing the charges as politically motivated, while others argue that public figures must exercise caution in their statements online.

Metro

Alleged Cybercrime: Court Grants Sowore Bail

Published

21 hours ago

December 3, 2025

Editor

Justice Mohammed Umar of the Abuja Federal High Court, on Tuesday, granted former presidential candidate and publisher, Omoyele Sowore, bail on self-recognition, cautioning him to refrain from making any utterances that could incite the public against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Sowore’s bail followed his arraignment by the Department of State Services (DSS) before the court on a five-count charge bordering on alleged cybercrime.

In the five-count charge, Sowore is accused of allegedly making derogatory remarks about President Tinubu on his social media handles.

Sowore, who is the convener of the #RevolutionNow movement, pleaded not guilty to the charges after they were read to him.

Earlier in the proceedings, his counsel, Marshall Abubakar, had raised a motion challenging the competence of the suit, arguing that the court lacked jurisdiction.

The prosecution objected, stating they had only just been served with the processes and needed time to respond.

In a short ruling, Justice Umar held that the objection on jurisdiction was not ready for hearing because the prosecution was served that morning, adding that the defendant needed to give them adequate time to file a counter-affidavit.

He then directed that the charges be read to the defendant.

When the charge was read, Sowore pleaded not guilty; his counsel applied for bail on self-recognition. The prosecution, however, opposed the application, arguing that Sowore posed a flight risk.

Justice Umar, in ruling on the bail request, granted Sowore bail on self-recognition and adjourned the matter to January 19, 2026, for trial.

Sowore, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in 2019, was accused of contravening the provisions of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024, and the Criminal Code Act by calling President Bola Tinubu a criminal

The two other defendants listed in the charge, marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025, are X Incorp (formerly Twitter) and Meta (Facebook) Incorp.

Metro

Delta: Suspected Kidnapper Killed In Gun Battle With Police

Published

1 day ago

December 2, 2025

Editor

A suspected kidnapper has been killed during a gun battle with operatives of the Delta State Police Command in collaboration with Community Volunteers in Obiaruku Forest.

Delta State Police Public Relations Officer,SP Bright Edafe, confirmed the incident in a statement on Tuesday.

“Operatives of the Command State Anti-Cult Unit (SACU), in collaboration with community volunteers, were on intensive patrol when they received credible intelligence that suspected kidnappers were mobilising within the Obiaruku forest to carry out an attack.

“Acting swiftly on the information, the operatives advanced towards the location to forestall the planned criminal activity,” the statement said.

According to Edafe, on approaching the area, the suspects opened fire from multiple directions in a bid to repel the team.

“The operatives responded with superior firepower, leading to the death of one suspect, while others escaped into the forest with various degrees of injuries.

“One AK-47 rifle with forty-two rounds of live ammunition, nine mobile phones, and charms were recovered,” the statement added.