NYSC official faces trial for corps member’s death after alleged abortion procurement

A National Youth Service Corps official in Ogun State has been arraigned before a magistrate court and remanded in a correctional centre after a young female corps member under his supervision died allegedly from complications of an abortion procedure he is accused of procuring — a case that has sparked national outrage and prompted the Ogun State Government to personally take over the prosecution.

Abass Olalekan, 43, who served as the Local Government Inspector of the NYSC in Abeokuta South Local Government Area, was arraigned before Magistrate A. K. Araba at the Isabo Magistrates Court in Abeokuta on Monday, March 23, 2026, on a two-count charge of conspiracy and unlawful attempt to procure abortion.

The charge reads that Olalekan and others still at large, between January and March 2026 at Ikereku area, Laderin, Abeokuta, conspired to commit a felony — namely abortion — contrary to Section 516 of the Criminal Code Laws of Ogun State 2006. A second count alleges that he unlawfully attempted to procure the abortion of Victoria Ariyo by supplying her with drugs, contrary to Section 230 of the same law.

According to findings from the police investigation, Olalekan was in a romantic relationship with the deceased. The investigation further alleges that he encouraged the termination of the pregnancy, recommended an individual to carry out the procedure, and provided financial support for it. Victoria Ariyo died following the procedure. The Ogun State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, confirmed the case was under investigation by the State Criminal Investigation Department.

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Olalekan pleaded not guilty to all charges. His defence counsel, Elizabeth Adelabu, applied for bail, arguing that the charges were bailable and that the charge sheet did not state the defendant was directly responsible for the death of the deceased. Magistrate Araba granted bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties in like sum, one of whom must be a blood relative and the other gainfully employed. Both sureties must provide a utility bill, depose to an affidavit of means, submit six passport photographs, and present evidence of 2026 tax payment to the Ogun State Government. Pending fulfilment of the bail conditions, Olalekan was remanded at the Ibara Correctional Centre. The case has been adjourned to April 14 for further hearing.

The state government moved decisively to assert control over the matter. In a statement released on Tuesday, the Ogun State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Oluwasina Ogungbade (SAN), confirmed he had taken over the prosecution after receiving the file from the state police command, emphasising that the bail granted to Olalekan was based solely on the bailable nature of the charges and does not reflect the strength or quality of the evidence. “The investigation further alleges that he encouraged the termination of the pregnancy, recommended an individual to carry out the procedure, and provided financial support for it,” the government’s statement read.

Olalekan has since been replaced as LGI for Abeokuta South by Aishatu Lawal following his arrest by the Ogun State Police Command.

The case has cast a harsh spotlight on a deeply troubling pattern in Ogun State’s NYSC secretariat. Victoria Ariyo is the second corps member to die serving under the Abeokuta South Local Government Area within barely a month. The first, Adeleye Mary, was found dead in her apartment. The NYSC buried Mary without conducting an autopsy, with the agency’s Ogun State spokesperson saying her family had consented to a burial without post-mortem examination, a decision that has drawn sharp criticism.

When questions were raised about both deaths, the NYSC’s Ogun State Public Relations Officer, Mr Emmanuel Igba, said he was unaware of the incidents as he had been on leave and would not resume until April, a response that critics described as an abdication of institutional responsibility in the face of a crisis that demands urgent answers.

The deaths have reignited calls for a comprehensive review of the welfare, safety, and safeguarding protocols for corps members deployed across Nigeria — and for stronger accountability for NYSC officials in supervisory roles.