The camp of former Minister of Power and 2027 APC governorship aspirant in Oyo State Adebayo Adelabu has denied claims linking his personal assistant Ajiboye Sangogade to the kidnapping of his younger sister Busayo John-Paul and her twin sons.
In a statement issued in Ibadan on Wednesday, ex-Minister Adelabu’s media aide Femi Awogboro, described the allegation as false and warned those spreading it to stop or face legal action.
Mr Awogboro said Mr Sangogade had no involvement in the abduction and accused those behind the claim of trying to damage his reputation.
He noted that the Oyo State Police Command did not mention Sangogade in its briefing on the case.
According to him, police spokesperson Olayinka Ayanlade did not link Sangogade to the kidnapping syndicate, adding that only a suspect identified as Segun was mentioned in connection with the investigation.
Awogboro questioned why some individuals were linking Adelabu’s aide to the incident despite the police statement and said the allegation was being used for political purposes.
He also recalled a previous claim that Adelabu had handed the APC ticket for the Ibadan North Federal Constituency by-election to Sangogade. He said the claim was disproved when Wale Olatunji emerged as the party’s candidate.
Awogboro urged party members and the public not to be misled by what he described as repeated false claims.
He added that Sangogade had no connection to the kidnapping and said further attempts to link him to the incident would be challenged through legal means.
Mrs John-Paul and her twin sons Peter and Paul were abducted by gunmen on June 3 at Elewura-Challenge in Ibadan South-West Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The attackers reportedly trailed the victims’ vehicle from their residence before stopping it around 7:30 a.m. and taking them away.
On June 7, Oyo State Commissioner of Police Oluwagbemiga Abimbola paraded four suspects arrested in connection with the case at the state police headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan.
Items recovered from the suspects included three pump-action rifles, 14 live cartridges, an ash-coloured Toyota Corolla allegedly used in the operation, charms, a battle axe, a hammer, substances suspected to be hard drugs and two face masks.
The Oyo State Government later demolished a building linked to the suspects and revoked the land on which it stood.
