Babcock University, Illishan Remo, Ogun State has expelled one of its students, Oladipupo Siwajuola, for engaging in fetish practices and drug peddling among others.
Recall that the mother of the student, Fijabi Oyindamola Omotayo, had earlier declared him missing, blaming the institution for her child’s disappearance.
However, the missing student was later found but Babcock University management revealed that he had left the campus without authorisation.
Disclosing the school’s decision on the matter, Babcock’s Director of Marketing and Communication, Joshua Suleiman announced that the student deliberately sneaked out, adding that he had been rusticated by the school authority.
Angered by the way the student’s mother handled the case to indict the institution, Babcock said it would not be instituting a lawsuit against her because of the conduct of Siwajuola’s father.
Suleiman added that the student, upon returning to the campus on May 15, was invited by the Department of Secret Service, where he confessed to several acts of misconduct which were against the institution’s guidelines.
He continued, “Among them was the purchase of black soap from a traditional herbalist for N100,000, which contradicted his mother’s earlier claim that she had given it to him to treat a skin condition. Siwajuola admitted that the soap was intended for ritual purposes, as part of a “Yahoo Yahoo Plus” scheme, a slang term for internet fraud mixed with fetish practices.
“He revealed he was engaging in fetish practices in an attempt to get rich quickly.
“He also confessed to drug peddling, borrowing N500,000 from an online loan app to fund gambling, and impersonating another student to open a bank account.”
The statement further noted that Siwajuola had sold his phone without authorisation and misled the buyer by claiming that his father had consented.
While contrasting Siwajuola’s mother’s claim that her son was found by his secondary school friends, the university disclosed that it was Sodiq’s mother, the parent of a friend he stayed with in Lagos, who discovered his presence in their home and alerted his family after noticing the growing online controversy.
Following investigations, Babcock University stated that Siwajuola was found liable for multiple offences, including “unauthorised exit from campus, possession and use of fetish materials, drug peddling, impersonation and dishonesty, and unauthorised sale of personal property.”
The university added that it had no choice but to expel Siwajuola per global best practices.
“While we recognise the emotional weight of this decision, especially for the family involved, our foremost responsibility remains the safety and moral integrity of all students entrusted to our care,” Suleiman said.
