The parents of 16-year-old Oluwatobi Odunayo have traded blames over his disappearance from home about a month ago.
While the father, Olagoke Odunayo, a printer, accused the mother of hiding him, the mother, Taiwo, said she believed her son was forced to flee home due to his father’s maltreatment, adding that she did not know his whereabouts.
The two parents separated about four years ago after a disagreement over the relocation of the family.
While Olagoke stays on Liberty Street, in the Agbado Ijaiye area of Lagos, Taiwo lives in Ekiti State.
The victim was said to be staying with the mother before relocating to Lagos in 2015 after completing his secondary school education.
It was learnt that on March 26, his father asked him to buy some doughnuts and had given him N500 for the purpose. However, Oluwatobi did not return home.
Olagoke told our correspondent that efforts to find him had proved abortive, adding that no one had contacted the family.
He said, “I brought him to Lagos last year after he finished his secondary school in Ado-Ekiti. I warned him against keeping company with the wrong people. I tried my best to provide him with all he needed pending when he would get admission into the university.
“On March 26, around 8.30am, we were about preparing breakfast when his siblings said they needed appetisers. I asked him to get them some doughnuts and I gave him N500.”
He said when he did not see his son after one hour, he sent his siblings to look for him, adding that they also could not find him.
He explained that he reported a case of missing person at the Ijaiye Ojokoro Police Station, saying the police had also yet to make headway.
Olagoke, however, said he suspected that his mother knew his whereabouts because she did not show enough concern for him ever since the incident happened.
However, the victim’s mother, Taiwo, said she had yet to set eyes on her first child, accusing the father of maltreating him.
She said, “I left my husband because when things were not going on well for us, I asked him to let us relocate, but he insisted on staying in Lagos. I had to move on, and that was why I relocated to Ekiti State.
“The last time I set eyes on my son was when I visited Lagos sometime ago. The boy does not have a phone, so there is no way he could have contacted me. I believe he ran away from home because his father maltreated him. I have tried to also find him to no avail.”
The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, said the police had started investigation.
“The child is about 16 years old and was living with the father. Investigation is ongoing,” she said.
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