DNA Evidence Leads To Exoneration Of Nigerian Sentenced To Death In Indonesia – Lawyer

DNA Evidence Leads To Exoneration Of Nigerian Sentenced To Death In Indonesia – Lawyer

A U.S.-based Nigerian lawyer, Emmanuel Ogebe, has revealed that DNA testing played a crucial role in securing the release of Emmanuel Ihejirika, who spent 20 years on death row in Indonesia. Ihejirika was recently acquitted by the Indonesian Supreme Court……CONTINUE READING 

Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, announced on Saturday, September 14, 2024, that Ogebe took on the case pro bono and successfully argued it at the apex court. Ogebe explained that Ihejirika had been arrested for using a fake Sierra Leonean passport.

Due to the lack of a retrieval database within the Nigerian Immigration Service, Ogebe’s team resorted to DNA testing to prove Ihejirika’s innocence.

He stated, “Since he was arrested with a fake passport, we needed to establish his true identity as a Nigerian. Unfortunately, at the time, Nigerian immigration didn’t have a retrieval database, so we utilized DNA testing both on him in Indonesia and on his family members in Ebonyi to confirm his identity and nationality.”

Ogebe also noted that Ihejirika had been trafficked by drug cartels and expressed concern for other Nigerians who are still imprisoned in Indonesia and other countries.