The Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, affirmed the sentence of Mutiu Ogundare, the dethroned Baale of Shangisha in Magodo, Lagos State, for faking his own abduction.
Justice Hakeem Oshodi of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja had sentenced Ogundare to 15 years imprisonment on September 27, 2022.
Dissatisfied with the judgment, Ogundare challenged the decision of the lower court, but the Court of Appeal upheld the judgment on counts one and two and reduced his sentence to 12 years.
The court ruled that Ogundare would serve 10 years for count one and two years for count two, respectively, and overturned the sentence in respect of false representation to release a kidnapped person.
Ogundare’s conviction dates back to July 16, 2017, when he was remanded in Kirikiri Prison for faking his own kidnap.
His brother, Opeyemi Mohammed, and wife, Abolanle, were also prosecuted alongside him.
Ogundare’s staged kidnapping took place on July 5, 2017.
He later confessed to staging the kidnap to blackmail the state government after allegedly being abducted by three men.
The former governor of Lagos State, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, subsequently removed Ogundare as the Baale of Shangisha.
