On November 14 evening in Lagos, news filtered through that Olanrewaju Omiyinka had been released from custody. For more than three years, the actor most Nigerians knew as Baba Ijesha had lived at the centre of a national argument about celebrity power social media outrage and the slow grind of the justice system.
His release which was announced by an ally, Yomi Fabiyi did not immediately come with images or public appearances yet it was enough to reopen old wounds for some and offer relief to others who had insisted that his long detention demanded closer scrutiny.
The development returned his name to the headlines and revived a debate that has never fully faded. The debate about how a comedian, once defined by laughter became a figure linked to one of the most divisive criminal cases in recent memory.
From ‘Olanrewaju Omiyinka’ to ‘Baba Ijesha’
Olarenwaju James Omiyinka, born on October 8, 1972, is a versatile Nigerian actor, content creator, and social media comedian. He is widely known by his stage name, Baba Ijesha, a title that reflects his comedic flair in Yoruba films as well as the humorous content he used to create online.
He rose to prominence through his roles in films such as Opolo, Ololo Masun, and numerous others, earning a reputation as one of Nollywood’s most recognizable faces. In recent years, Baba Ijesha expanded his reach by entering the social media space, creating content that showcased his comedic talent and earned him a massive fan base across Nigeria and beyond.
Baba Ijesha was born into the family of Mr. and Mrs. Omiyinka in Ile-Ife, Osun State, in southwestern Nigeria. He developed an early passion for acting. This interest led him to join his church’s drama troupe as a teenager and later, after moving to Lagos, to become part of a professional stage group to hone his craft.
His first professional film role came after his move to Lagos, marking the beginning of a career that would see him become a household name in Yoruba cinema. Over time, he appeared in a string of movies and sitcoms, cementing his status as a major Nollywood figure. Recognizing his talent for content creation, he embraced social media as a platform to showcase his humour, further growing his audience and solidifying his influence in the entertainment industry.
With over ten years of experience as a professional entertainer, Baba Ijesha is widely regarded as one of Nollywood’s key actors. Off-screen, he is a devoted family man. He married his wife on July 14, 2012, keeping her identity private, and together they have built a beautiful family.
The scandal that altered the trajectory
In April 2021 a clip and an allegation changed everything. Damilola Adekoya, a comedienne known as Princess released a video on social media that she said contained evidence of the sexual assault of a minor. The footage and the subsequent complaints prompted police investigations and arrests and turned a local industry rumour into a formal criminal prosecution.
The allegation reverberated beyond the usual circles of celebrity gossip because it involved a child and because the footage made the case feel immediate and raw to viewers who shared and debated it online. Public reaction was swift and furious and the story filled headlines for weeks.
The case was not only legal but social and cultural. It forced the industry to confront the limits of trust among colleagues and asked Nigerians to reconcile how someone who had made a living by making people laugh could be accused of behaviour that betrayed that public trust. The viral nature of the allegation turned private pain into a national conversation about child protection celebrity culture and the sometimes reckless power of social media.
Princess, Iyabo Ojo and the public theatre of accusation
Princess who had been one of the figures to publicize the footage became a lightning rod. She denied releasing some versions of the footage even as she and other celebrities became central voices in a debate about evidence and exposure.
Actress Iyabo Ojo emerged as a vocal supporter of the victim and used her platform to call for accountability. Their interventions expanded the story beyond courts and police stations and made it a subject of moral and professional argument throughout the industry. The exchanges between public figures showed how quickly advocacy and accusation can alloy into spectacle and how social media can create both pressure for justice and confusion about facts.
For defenders of the actresses and campaigners, the choice to go public was an act of courage and necessary advocacy. For critics the publicization risked prejudicing investigations and inflaming public sentiment in ways that complicate a fair trial. The tension between these positions remained a through line as the legal process unfolded.
How Yomi Fabiyi came into the picture
When the case entered the slow machinery of courts Yomi Fabiyi stepped into an unusual role. Fabiyi who is himself a known figure in Nollywood did not limit his involvement to private counsel or quiet support.
He made public statements, deployed legal arguments in interviews and framed his advocacy as a defence of due process. To some netizens, his intervention marked a clear departure from the solidarity politics that had driven the initial outcry. He argued that the law must run its course and that there were questions about evidence chain and procedure that merited scrutiny.
That stance won him some supporters who feared the weaponisation of social media. Some other netizens were however of the opinion that a prominent actor should not publicly defend someone accused of harming a child.
The courtroom years
From arrest, to conviction, to appeal the legal story unfolded in technical stages. The trial in Lagos resulted in a conviction and a sentence that sent Baba Ijesha to custody. In 2022, the Lagos Special Offences Court found him guilty of indecent treatment and sexual assault but acquitted him of charges requiring proof of penetration.
He was handed a total of 16 years imprisonment but was to serve five years due to concurrent sentencing.
The conviction was a pivotal moment because it converted viral outrage into a formal punishment. For many advocates of the victim, that verdict represented finally achieved justice. For others who had worried about the evidentiary process, it set the stage for appellate review.
Appeals followed and the legal arguments narrowed to questions of whether the prosecution had established the essential elements of the offences and whether procedures at trial were fair and lawful.
In June 2024, an appellate court reportedly affirmed parts of the lower court ruling and the five year sentence which further complicated the matter for those who still hoped for an acquittal through appeal.
Imprisonment and the life inside custody
Prison is its own landscape and for a public figure like Baba Ijesha, it was also a place of private reckoning under the gaze of the nation. Through it all, his industry presence diminished as productions moved on and colleagues reassessed professional relationships. Years that had once been measured in film releases and comic Instagram clips were counted instead in court dates and legal filings for the actor.
Public reaction during the imprisonment years was divided. Social media was a daily battleground where hashtags and opinion pieces alternated with calls for better protections for children. The case became a touchstone for civic groups and legal analysts who debated whether viral videos should be treated as decisive evidence or as starting points for careful investigations.
The eventual release and its announcement
On Friday, November 14 2025, actor Yomi Fabiyi posted on Instagram that Baba Ijesha had been released from custody after being cleared by the court of defiling the minor. Actors like Foluke Daramola and Olohuniyo took to Fabiyi’s comment section to congratulate Baba Ijesha.
The announcement by Fabiyi was congratulatory and accusatory. He used the moment to call out Princess, for her supposed role in Baba Ijesha’s conviction. In his lengthy post, he wrote:
“You are now officially FREE AND OUT. Baba Ijesha is not just back but BETTER.
I am also happy you were cleared by the APPEAL COURT of ever having sex/defile any child/minor. The 7-year-old story is a charade. We live in a terrible world, where sentiments and wickedness rise above the rule of law and truth.
Let it be on record that:
1. Those that SET THE TRAP engaged in age falsification because there was no single proof till date anywhere, not even in court that said victim was 14yrs). To me, they only weaponised abuse on child/minor to destroy a weak target and achieve vendetta.
2. Damola Adekola (Princess Comedian ally/neighbor and Security of the house with alias Okele who sexually abused this girl since 2020 are still out there. Damola Adekola, who practically had sex, confirmed the girl was his girlfriend and was asked to walk free despite initially being arrested alongside Baba ljesha. Make it make sense: same case, same victim, same investigation.
3. Princess Comedian groomed the girl(minor) for sexual activities. This is coupled with negligence because sperm was found on the girl days after Baba ljesha was arrested, and it is not for Baba ljesha. Test conformed she recently lost her virginity then.
4 Princess Comedian and her co-travellers engaged in
CHILD PORNOGRAPHY by deliberately installing cameras on the same day Baba ljesha was invited to film. She recorded how her foster daughter was sexually abused (THAT IS IF THE GIRL IS TRULY 14YRS).
5. Princess Comedian subjected the girl to re-truama. She practically wants the girl to suffer PTSD just because she wants to gather evidence (THAT IS IF THE GIRL IS TRULY 14YRS). She abused the rights of the girl because she relied on her for food, shelter, and guidance.
6. Etc
We, as a Human Rights Organization, never and will never condone or support any form of sexual abuse, let alone on children or minors. We will continue to fight against selective justice, abuse of fundamental human rights of any persons, and fight against organised crime like in the case of Baba ljesha.
Prerequisites for Princess Comedian actions are errored. It has no propensity in law. Justice on two left.“
Other figures such as broadcaster Kola Olotu and film producer Kola Olotu also confirmed the development.
Hours ago, on Saturday morning November 15, a video clip shared on social media showed Baba Ijesha confirming his release from prison.
The video showed the actor sitting inside a vehicle, making a short phone recording in Yoruba.
In the clip, he is heard saying:
“Apase, I’m out… I just came out. I want to relax. I just want to leave here so I decided to inform you. Thank you for supporting me. I will call you.”
Another clip saw him singing in Yoruba, while shedding tears. See clip and Fabiyi’s post below:
A life reframed by scandal and law
If a career is a string of parts then Baba Ijesha had performed roles that made audiences laugh and forget. Those performances are now refracted through the events of the past four years. The public image that made him a friend of the screen has been remade into a contested symbol of debate about celebrity and responsibility.
Conclusion
The path before Olanrewaju Omiyinka aka Baba Ijesha is uncertain and the same is true for the industry and society that watched his rise and fall.
Publicly, the actor will face the question of whether audiences will accept him back into the spaces he once occupied. Industry gatekeepers, casting directors and producers will weigh reputational risk against questions of rehabilitation and talent. For survivors and advocates the release will likely be a moment to assess whether legal outcomes have delivered justice or whether deeper reforms are still needed.
If the past four years taught any lesson, it is that being a celebrity cannot shield someone from scrutiny and that social media can both reveal wrongdoing and complicate formal justice.
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