THE family of Sunday Morakinyo, one of the Osun indigenes involved in the ‘death-for-fowl’ case who was pardoned, has claimed that he returned home with a mental disorder.
The family of Morakinyo is seeking help from the Osun state government and the public to support him in his struggle with mental health issues. They claim that his mental ailments began after he was arrested by the police in 2010 for allegedly stealing poultry and eggs and that he was previously in good mental health.
Media outlets reported recently that Morakinyo and another individual Segun Olowookere were taken to court in 2013 for allegedly working together to steal fowl and eggs worth N20,000 from Oguntade Faramade in 2010.
They were found guilty of conspiracy, robbery, and theft in 2014 and sentenced to death by the Osun State High Court.
The ICIR reported that the Osun state governor, Ademola Adeleke, promised pardon for Oloweookere following a public outcry.
The governor fulfilled his promise last week when both Oloweookere and Morakinyo, who got death sentences for stealing a fowl, were granted pardons.
The governor disclosed this in a statement on his X on Thursday, December 26.
Adeleke said that 51 other inmates were also pardoned following recommendations of the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy.
It was, however, revealed that Morakinyo, upon his release, returned home with a mental illness that reportedly developed after his arrest.
According to Punch Newspaper, Morakinyo’s uncle, Ojo Olaide, who spoke on behalf of the family, said it’s sad to hear that Morakinyo returned home with a mental illness after his release from prison.
He made it clear that Morakinyo was healthy and mentally stable before his arrest, which suggests that his time in prison may have had a significant impact on his mental health.
Olaide reported that Morakinyo was arrested at the market in Oyan for allegedly stealing fowl and eggs, which he denied.
Olaide stated that Segun Olowookere was also arrested and brought to the station and that the family had wanted to bail them out, but the two men insisted that they shouldn’t because they hadn’t committed any crime.
Olaide said that the two men were later transferred to the Okuku Police Division and then to Osogbo and that the case eventually escalated to a robbery charge, which they did not commit.
He claimed that during the trial, the policeman who arrested them testified that Morakinyo and Segun were not involved in the theft and that the actual perpetrators were taken to welfare homes in Osogbo and later released.
Olaide expressed gratitude to Governor Adeleke for pardoning Morakinyo and his co-convict, Olowookere, and said he is hoping the governor will go a step further and provide some support to help Morakinyo get back on his feet.
A reporter with the ICIR
A Journalist with a niche for quality and a promoter of good governance