A verified X user, @AsakyGRN, has posted a video showing Nollywood actor, Olanrewaju James, popularly called Baba Ijesha, kneeling in front of the Ọò̩ni of Ifẹ̀, Ọọ̀ni Adéyẹyẹ̀ Ẹni-ìtàn Babátúndé Ògúnwùsì, Ọ̀jájá II, with a claim that the actor shows appreciation to the royal king for facilitating his release from prison.
The 30-second video was watermarked with texts that read thus: “Today, Baba Ijesha go thank Ooni of Ife because na him give order make dem release Ijesha.”
The X user also captioned the video as follows: “Baba ijesha visits the Ooni of Ife after being released from prison.”
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The post has generated more than half a million views, with over 500 reposts and more than 3,500 likes as of June 25, 2025.
Similarly, the video has circulated widely on TikTok as seen here and here.
CLAIM
Video shows Nollywood actor Olanrewaju James, also known as Baba Ijesha, kneeling in front of Ooni of Ife after his release from prison.
Baba Ijesha’s Case
In April 2021, Olanrewaju James, popularly called Baba Ijesha, was arrested by the Lagos State Police Command over allegations of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl, the foster daughter of Nigerian comedienne, Damilola Adekoya, popularly known as Princess.
The arrest followed a sting operation orchestrated by Princess, during which CCTV footage reportedly captured Baba Ijesha engaging in inappropriate conduct with the minor. The incident sparked widespread public outrage, particularly after parts of the footage went viral online.
He was subsequently arraigned before the Ikeja Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences Court on six counts, including indecent treatment of a child, sexual assault, attempted sexual assault by penetration, and sexual assault by penetration, all contrary to provisions of the Lagos State Criminal Law of 2015.
The trial featured witness testimonies from Princess, a child protection expert, and police investigators, along with the CCTV recording and a statement reportedly made by the actor confessing to parts of the crime.
On July 14, 2022, the court found Baba Ijesha guilty on four out of the six-count charges and sentenced him to 16 years imprisonment.
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The judge, Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo, however, discharged and acquitted him of count one and six which were sexual assault by penetration (which took place in 2014) and attempted sexual assault by penetration, which took place in 2021) due to what the court described as lack of direct and sufficient evidence.
The defendant was found guilty and sentenced to five years imprisonment for count two (2), three years for count three (3), five years for count four (4) and three years for count five (5) taking effect from today, 14th of July, 2022. Though the cumulative sentence was longer, the judge ruled that the terms would run concurrently, meaning he would serve a maximum of five years.
Following the conviction, Baba Ijesha appealed the judgement, claiming the entire scenario was staged and that he had been tricked into participating in what he believed to be a skit. His lawyers argued that the video evidence was misinterpreted and that the prosecution failed to establish the age of the survivor convincingly.
However, on June 28, 2024, the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal upheld the lower court’s ruling, reaffirming that the evidence presented particularly relating to the April 19, 2021 assault was sufficient to sustain the conviction.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE.
When our fact-checker subjected some keyframes in the video to a Google Reverse Image search, the results show that the video had earlier surfaced online in 2024, pushing the same narratives. Those versions can be seen here and here etc.
A thorough look at the video shows that it was shot during one of the birthday celebrations of Ọò̩ni of Ifẹ̀ because the actor was seen towards the end of the video singing a birthday eulogy for the foremost Yoruba traditional ruler.
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Further checks by The FactCheckHub show that as of June 26, 2025, Baba Ijesha remains in the Nigerian Correctional Service’s custody, serving the five-year sentence imposed by the court. There have been no reported appeals to the Supreme Court or applications for clemency.
When The FactCheckHub contacted the spokesperson of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Lagos State Command, Onimshi Osho, to confirm whether Baba Ijesha has been released, he debunked the claim, saying Baba Ijesha is still serving the jail terms.
THE VERDICT
The claim that the video shows Baba Ijesha after his release from prison is FALSE; Nigerian Correctional Service confirms that the Nollywood actor is still serving his sentence and yet to completed his jail term which began in 2022.
Nurudeen Akewushola is a fact-checker with FactCheckHub. He has authored several fact checks which have contributed to the fight against information disorder. You can reach him via nyahaya@icirnigeria.org and @NurudeenAkewus1 via Twitter.
