A suspected land grabber, Najeem Osolake has been arrested and charged to court following intervention of Ogun State Government in a land dispute between him (Osolake) and a business woman, Damilola Adisa.
Penpushing reports that the government through the office of the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Oluwasina Ogungbade, ordered the Ogun State Task Force on illegalities to arrest Osolake in early August, and was subsequently charged to court.
The woman it would be recalled alleged that Osolake went to her late father’s property situated in the Ibafo area of the state and threatened to seize it, despite her having valid documents and her father’s grave being located on the land.
Penpushing further reports that the woman added that the suspected land grabber threatened to kill her and her siblings if they did not surrender the property.
“Somebody called us that some people were working on my daddy’s land. So, when we got there, we met labourers and thugs trying to lay a foundation on the land. They had already demolished part of my father’s grave’, she was quoted saying
Penpushing also reports that the woman explained that the matter was initially handled by the Ibafo Police Station, which arrested the man and later released him.
“They asked for his documents, but he couldn’t produce any. He threatened that he was ready to go to court. The man threatened to kill us in the presence of the police, yet they freed him,” she alleged.
“After he was arrested, some non-governmental organisations, lawyers, and his children reached out to us because he was remanded, and we charged him to court’, the woman stated.
“He was brought down to Abeokuta. We let him know that if you believe that you have a legitimate claim to the land rather than going there to throw down structures, you should approach the court. This woman has been on the land. Her father had been on the land for some years. He had a structure on it, he died, and was buried on that land.”
Penpushing reports that the suspect was remanded for 60 days and later settled out of court following pleas from his children, who signed undertakings that their father would neither trespass on the property nor threaten the owners.
The Commissioner speaking on while Osolake settled out of court, said his children advised him to forget that land and to forget whatever claims that he said he had, because truly those people had been on the land for some time.
“They undertook that their father would not disturb those people on the land again. So based on that, and the fact that he was said to be about 70 years old, I felt that we could achieve common ground by this mediation. So I withdrew the matter, and he was released’, the commissioner said
“That’s how it is. Though Ms. Adisa was a bit apprehensive that he might still come back, as far as I know, I don’t think he has gone back there to disturb them again. I told her that if he shows up again, she should just let me know. We have withdrawn the criminal charge, but of course we can reinstate it if he goes there to threaten the owners,” he said.
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