Father of Christiana Idowu, a 300-level student of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), has appealed to Nigerians for help, lamenting that one year after her death, the case against the alleged killer, 23-year-old Ayomide Adeleye, appears stalled.
Christiana was abducted in August 2024 while travelling from her home in Itaoluwo, Ikorodu, to the University of Lagos, where she was undergoing industrial training.
Police investigations later traced her disappearance to Adeleye, a philosophy student of Olabisi Onabanjo University, who confessed to killing her after luring her to his residence under the pretext of fixing her phone.
Lagos State Police Command confirmed that Adeleye was handed over by the Nigerian Army.
He reportedly admitted to strangling Christiana and extorting N360,000 from her mother while pretending she was still alive.
Investigators tracked him through transactions linked to his SportyBet account, which contained his National Identification Number.
In a video shared online on Sunday, Christiana’s father, Oluwafemi Idowu, expressed frustration over the lack of progress in the case.
“It’s getting to a year now and the boy was arrested in police custody. I’ve not heard anything concerning the case. My daughter, she’s all that brilliant and I want you Nigerians to come to my aid. Please, I’m helpless, I’m in the dark. I can’t just allow a girl just to go like that,” he said.
He also raised concerns that the suspect might have been released and urged the public not to forget his daughter’s case.
Responding to the video on Sunday, Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, clarified that Adeleye remains in custody.
Hundeyin referred to a January 2025 statement by the Nigerian Correctional Service, which confirmed that the suspect was duly remanded pending advice from the Department of Public Prosecution.
“The suspect has not been released. The matter is with the Department of Public Prosecution, as confirmed by the Correctional Service,” he said.
