Segun Olowookere, Convicted Fowl Thief, Pardoned by Governor Adeleke
Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State has granted clemency to Segun Olowookere, who has spent the last 10 years on death row following his conviction for armed robbery. Olowookere, who was sentenced to death in 2014, was among 53 inmates pardoned by the governor on Tuesday, December 26, 2024.
The crime that led to Olowookere’s death sentence dates back to 2010, when, at the age of 17, he was arrested for breaking into the home of a police officer with a firearm and stealing hens. His conviction was handed down by Justice Falola of the Osun State High Court in 2014, after a trial that ended with a death sentence for armed robbery.
Governor Adeleke, in a statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), announced the pardon, which followed recommendations from the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy.
“In line with the recommendations of the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy and in exercise of the power conferred on me by paragraph (a), (c) and (d) of subsection (i) of section 212 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (As Amended), I am pleased to extend my grace and mercy unto 53 convicts serving various convictions within the Nigerian Correctional Service,” the governor said.
Olowookere’s pardon was part of a broader clemency initiative aimed at reducing the sentences of certain inmates.
“The following 4 (four) convicts also have their sentences commuted from death sentence to outright pardon: Sunday Morakinyo, Segun Olowookere, Tunde Olapade, Demola Odeyemi,” the statement read.
The case of Olowookere and his accomplice, Sunday Morakinyo, sparked viral social media debates in recent weeks, with claims that they were sentenced to death merely for stealing a fowl.
In addition to Olowookere and Morakinyo, Governor Adeleke commuted the sentences of six other death row inmates and granted outright pardons to 12 convicts. He also forgave the remaining sentences of 30 inmates convicted of minor offenses.
