Students in Ogun State, on Monday, blocked the Mowe end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, to protest what they described as the ‘mysterious disappearance and possible murder’ of a 2024 graduate of the Lagos State University, Ojo, Quadri Adedamola Ogunbode.
The students, under the aegis of the National Association of Ogun State Students, said the protest was organised to draw the attention of the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to the matter, which has left the parents of the victim in agony.
The protest halted vehicular movement on the expressway for more than one hour.
Armed with placards and banners, the students chanted songs and demanded justice, asking the police to unravel the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the LASU graduate, who is also an indigene of Ogun State
Ogunbode, a graduate of the Political/Education of LASU was reported to have gone missinh on 17 February 2025 at a location close to a Celestial Church located in the neighbourhood of the university.
According to a preliminary police investigation, two suspects, including the Shepherd in charge of the Celestial Church were arrested and questioned over the matter.
Addressing newsmen shortly after the protest, the NAOSS National President, Kehinde Thomas, said the protest was organised to show solidarity to the victim who is a member of the association.
Thomas added that the protest was staged on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to draw the attention of the IG to the gravity of the matter, saying NAOSS is unsatisfied with the slow pace of police investigation.
He stated, ‘We, the leaders and members of the National Association of Ogun State Students (NAOSS) and the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) Stakeholders in the state, are here this morning with heavy hearts. Heavy hearts, I say because one of us, a NAOSS member and a graduate of the Lagos State University, Ojoo, Quadri Ogunbode, is missing and probably not alive as we speak.
‘Quadri, a forward-looking, hardworking and cool-headed Nigerian, disappeared mysteriously on February 17, 2025, a few seconds after he spoke with his girlfriend on the phone. This incident, according to our findings, happened in a neighbourhood very close to a Celestial Church around LASU Community in Lagos.
‘We temporarily blocked this busiest expressway in the country in order to draw the attention of the Inspector-General of Police, who is also an indigene of Ogun State, Kayode Egbetokun, to intervene and order a special investigation into the case of the alleged kidnapping and possible murder of Quadri Ogunbode.
‘This call on the IG, who is also a parent, to intervene in the matter had become imperative after police complicity and compromise were perceived. Quadri is a member of NAOSS, hence, we are appealing passionately to the IG to use his office, manpower and technology to unravel the disappearance of this affable and brilliant LASU graduate.’
He added, ‘We are not hoodlums, but students who are legitimately demanding justice and saying no to police complicity in this matter.
‘As an umbrella body of all Ogun State students, NAOSS cannot sit idly and watch the matter be swept under the carpet. We will not fold our arms and allow Quadri’s matter to join the swelling number of unresolved disappearance or murder cases in the country.
‘While we are optimistic that the intervention of the IGP will yield a fruitful result, NAOSS will not relent to continue to explore all legal means to mobilise relevant stakeholders to take action on the matter.’
Thomas said since the incident happened, Quadri’s parents, especially his mother, have been in anguish and psychological trauma, insisting the IG’s office must take over the case, which according to him has been dragging unnecessarily.
‘The anguish and psychological trauma parents of Quadri are going through are better imagined than experienced.
‘While we thank members of the press for their efforts in getting to the root of this matter, our association shall not rest until the matter is resolved. Remember, an injury to one is an injury to all,’ Thomas stated.
