A magistrate court in Lagos has acquitted Alabi Quadri, a teenager who gained significant attention during the 2023 presidential election. Quadri appeared in court on Thursday after spending several months in Kirikiri Prison, Lagos.
The court found him not guilty of charges related to conspiracy to commit felony and armed robbery, determining that he had no case to answer.
Magistrate Adetola Olorunfemi ordered Quadri’s release based on legal advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who stated that there was insufficient evidence to support the armed robbery allegations against him.
During the 2023 general elections, Quadri became a notable figure for his courageous act of standing in front of the convoy of Peter Obi, the then-presidential candidate for the Labour Party. Although his case was initially set for hearing on April 28, 2025, the Nigerian Correctional Service presented him before the Apapa Magistrate Court earlier than scheduled. This expedited hearing was a result of a request from both human rights lawyer and activist Inibehe Effiong and the DPP.
Effiong clarified that Quadri’s time in the Nigerian prison system stemmed not from serious criminal conduct but from longstanding issues with self-proclaimed ‘area boys’ (local thugs) in his community.
