The dawn of the new year brought heartbreak to the Jolaoso family of Onikolobo and the Kehinde family of Adatan, Ogun State, as the brutally mutilated body of Samuel Jolaoso was discovered on New Year’s Eve.
The shocking discovery was made by a patrol team of the NSCDC near the Odeda area. A voter’s card found on the deceased helped identify him, along with his cell phone. The patrol team dialed the last number saved as “Baba mi” (My Father), leading to the family being summoned to the NSCDC divisional office in Ogun State.
Samuel Jolaoso, a 27-year-old shopkeeper at Kugba area of Ogun State had been kidnapped on December 23, 2024. His family revealed that the abductors contacted them, demanding they hand over Bukola Olalekan, Samuel’s step-sister, as an exchange for his release. Bukola, who had fled Nigeria sometimes in February 2024 under duress, was accused of being the cause of Samuel’s tragic fate.
The meeting at the NSCDC office took a dramatic turn when Samuel’s grieving mother lashed out at Bukola’s mother, blaming her daughter’s alleged wayward lifestyle and bisexuality for Samuel’s death. The family admitted they had not reported the kidnapping to authorities, fearing arrest due to an outstanding police warrant against Bukola for alleged same-sex practices.
The kidnappers had reportedly learned that Bukola attended the family’s annual end-of-year party as she was seen around her family house.
Meanwhile, information had it that Bukola’s mother and uncle arranged her escape to Canada after threats to her life escalated.
Born into a family struggling with poverty and instability, Bukola faced numerous challenges. Her parents’ marriage was fraught with abuse, ending when she was just five. Raised by her mother, Bukola endured hardships, including a traumatic rape that resulted in her first pregnancy. Her tumultuous marital life further complicated her story, with her ex-husband, Mr. Ogbodu, demanding DNA tests for their two children, suspecting infidelity.
The DNA results, reportedly negative, fueled further tension. Mr. Ogbodu’s family issued threats, and news of Bukola’s bisexuality spread in her Ogun State community, attracting police interest and vigilante hostility.
Samuel Jolaoso’s murder is believed to be a grim fallout of Bukola’s escape and the controversies surrounding her. His mutilated body, found along the Ibadan-Odeda road, left the family shattered. The NSCDC allowed the family to retrieve his remains for burial, but the tragedy has deepened rifts within the family.
The Jolaoso and Kehinde families’ ordeal highlights the harsh realities faced by individuals accused of nonconformity in Nigeria. LGBTQ+ persons remain targets of criminalization, societal stigma, and violence.
“Bukola’s situation is dire. Returning to Nigeria would be a death sentence,” her mother lamented while speaking to our reporter.
As the Jolaoso family mourns Samuel’s untimely death, this black New Year serves as a grim reminder of the cascading consequences of entrenched prejudice, poverty, and fractured family ties.
By Grace Olaogun