The Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro (SAN), has dismissed reports suggesting that Nollywood actor Olanrewaju James, popularly known as Baba Ijesha, was cleared of sexu@l offences by the Court of Appeal. Pedro described the claims as false, misleading, and a deliberate distortion of judicial records.
Speaking with journalists in Lagos, the Attorney-General said there was never a point in the legal process where Baba Ijesha was acquitted of the 2021 sexu@l assault charges involving a minor. He explained that the High Court of Lagos State had, on July 14, 2022, convicted the actor for sexu@l assault and indecent treatment of a child, handing him sentences of five and three years respectively, to run concurrently.
Pedro noted that although the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, set aside convictions relating to alleged offences from 2013 to 2014, it firmly upheld the 2021 conviction, which remains the core of the case. He added that a subsequent appeal to the Supreme Court was struck out on May 29, 2025, on grounds of incompetence, while a final attempt to file a fresh appeal was dismissed on October 9, 2025. With that decision, the Court of Appeal judgment confirming the 2021 conviction became final.
According to the Attorney-General, Baba Ijesha’s recent release from custody was strictly because he had completed the full term of the sentence affirmed by the appellate court, not because he was discharged or acquitted. He warned the public to disregard narratives suggesting otherwise and cautioned against the spread of false information, stressing that his office will not hesitate to initiate criminal proceedings under Section 39 of the Lagos Criminal Law if the misinformation continues.
Pedro reiterated the state government’s commitment to protecting children, upholding criminal convictions, and ensuring that judicial outcomes are accurately represented in the public space.