Police in Osun State are investigating allegations that a media aide to Governor Ademola Adeleke staged his own kidnapping in an attempt to extort money.
The aide, Shakirulahi Babatunde, became the subject of controversy after reports alleged that he had falsely presented himself as a kidnap victim.
Governor Adeleke’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, confirmed that police were investigating the matter and denied claims that senior government officials were attempting to interfere with the inquiry.
Rasheed said the state government itself reported the purported kidnapping after Babatunde sent a message claiming he had been abducted.
He said the matter was also referred to the anti-kidnapping unit of the Osun State Police Command.
The government spokesperson rejected allegations that Chief of Staff Kazeem Akinleye or other officials had tried to stop the investigation or bribe police officers.
The Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, however, accused officials in the Adeleke administration of initially blaming the opposition for the purported kidnapping.
APC spokesman Kola Olabisi alleged that Babatunde was later found by police and confessed to staging the incident.
Those claims had not been publicly confirmed by the police in the source material supplied.
The police had not issued a formal statement on the outcome of the investigation at the time of the report. The matter therefore remains an allegation under investigation, and no finding of criminal responsibility should be treated as established until confirmed by law-enforcement authorities or a court
