IBADAN, Nigeria — The Media Office of Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli has vehemently rebuked a viral social media report attempting to connect the Oyo South lawmaker to the high-profile kidnapping of Mrs. Olaide Busayo Adegoke John-Paul—the younger sister of the former Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu—and her 12-year-old twin sons.
In an official press statement released on Sunday evening, June 7, 2026, the lawmaker’s media unit labeled the viral allegations as completely false, malicious, politically motivated, and a reckless attempt by detractors to heat up the state’s political landscape ahead of the upcoming electoral cycle.
Okay News reports that the controversy follows a spectacular late-night rescue operation on Saturday, June 6, where elite operatives from the Force Intelligence Department’s Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) tracked the kidnapping syndicate to an enclave in Ibadan. The operation resulted in a fierce gun duel that left two of the kidnappers dead and led to the safe rescue of Mrs. John-Paul and her twin sons, Peter and Paul, three days after they were violently ambushed on June 3 during a morning school run in the Challenge area of Ibadan.
The smear campaign against the lawmaker reportedly gained traction online after unverified claims surfaced alleging that campaign stickers or promotional materials bearing Senator Alli’s imagery were recovered at a site or mentioned by an associated suspect currently under interrogation. Denouncing the narrative as logically absurd, the Senator’s media office emphasized that an influential public servant, veteran legal practitioner, and highly regarded Ibadan High Chief would have no imaginable connection to such brutal criminal enterprises.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Senator Alli has no connection whatsoever with the said criminal incident, the individuals mentioned, or any activity related to kidnapping or violence,” the statement read, highlighting that even the speculative online reports conceded that no formal law enforcement agency has established a link to the lawmaker. “The attempt to mischievously link campaign materials or stickers to criminality clearly exposes a desperate agenda by political detractors to tarnish the image of a widely accepted leader whose popularity continues to grow across Oyo State.”
Strongly condemning the broader scourge of kidnapping and regional banditry, Senator Alli urged the public to disregard the defamatory propaganda in its entirety to avoid jeopardizing ongoing police investigations. He further called on the Inspector General of Police and the Oyo State Police Command to thoroughly investigate the exact source of the malicious digital publication, demanding that the purveyors of the fake news campaign be swiftly arrested and brought to justice under existing cybercrime frameworks.
