Thirteen out of the over eighty prisoners granted pardon by the ogun state governor Dapo Abiodun were on Friday morning released.
Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, had on Nigeria’s democracy Day, granted pardon to 41 other inmates serving in different Correctional Centres across the state and commuted the death sentence of 45 condemned prisoners to prison terms.
The 13 pardoned prisoners stepped out of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Maximum Security Custodial Centre, Ibara, Abeokuta on Friday morning.
Two of the pardoned prisoners, were on death roll for 24 years having gone through a rigorous justice system to prove their innocence in a murder charge.
Luck however came their way when a Non governmental organization, Centre for justice, mercy and reconciliation, took their case up with the Ogun State ministry of justice.
The head of the Ibara Correctional Centre facility Deputy Controller of Correction Ayoola Opadeji said the released prisoners were worthy of the pardoned and appealed to the society not to stigmatize them.
Ayoola Opadeji told journalists that other freed prisoners were also been released across the Correctional Centres of the state in line with the governor’s pardon.
(Editor: Ebuwa Omo-Osagie)
