After spending 26 long years on death row at the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison in Lagos State, 48-year-old Ogbonna Igbojionu has finally regained his freedom and reunited with his aged mother in an emotional homecoming to Abia State.
Igbojionu, who was just 22 years old when he was convicted in 1999 for allegedly purchasing a stolen generator, had been languishing on death row ever since.
His case has drawn attention to the flaws in Nigeria’s criminal justice system, particularly the harsh sentences handed down for relatively minor or non-violent offences.
According to reports, Igbojionu maintained his innocence throughout his incarceration, insisting that he had no knowledge that the generator he bought was stolen. His case reportedly lacked adequate legal representation during trial, a common plight among indigent inmates.
After years of advocacy by human rights lawyers and prison reform organizations, his case was revisited, leading to his eventual release. Details surrounding the legal process that led to his freedom are still emerging.
Photos and videos of his reunion with his elderly mother — who had been praying for his return since 1999 — have sparked a wave of reactions on social media, with many Nigerians expressing both joy for his release and outrage over the justice system’s failures.
Legal experts and civil rights groups are now calling for a full review of similar cases and a broader conversation on justice reform, including the abolition of the death penalty for non-capital offences.
Ogbonna Igbojionu’s story is a sobering reminder of the need for timely justice, proper legal aid, and systemic reform in Nigerias penal system.
