The parents of a Nigerian student convicted of robbery and blackmail in the United Kingdom have appealed to British authorities to review the judgment, insisting that their son was wrongly found guilty despite what they described as a lack of credible evidence linking him to the crime.
The parents, Aderinkola and Olayinka Akinrinola, made the appeal in a statement issued in Ibadan, Oyo State, on Thursday, days after their son, Oluwatobiloba Akinrinola, was convicted by a UK court on June 19.
Oluwatobiloba is currently being held at a correctional facility in Nottingham ahead of his sentencing scheduled for July 27.
The couple maintained that their son was innocent of all the charges, arguing that the prosecution’s case was based largely on his association with the principal suspect rather than any direct evidence of involvement in the robbery.
According to them, Oluwatobiloba became acquainted with the prime suspect, identified as Richile Vagnu, shortly after gaining admission into Leicester University as a first-year student in September 2025.
They said the relationship between the two was merely casual and not close enough to justify criminal liability.
The parents acknowledged that their son attended the party where the robbery occurred but insisted he neither participated in the attack nor benefited from it.
They claimed that some of the victims testified during the trial that Oluwatobiloba was not among those who robbed them, adding that he briefly entered the room where the incident was taking place, questioned what was happening and left after refusing to take part.
They further argued that investigations uncovered bank transfers made by victims to accounts allegedly belonging to other suspects, but no such financial transactions were traced to their son’s accounts.
According to them, a search of Oluwatobiloba’s residence also failed to recover any of the stolen items.
The family added that CCTV footage tendered in court only showed him arriving at the venue of the party and did not place him at the scene where the robbery was allegedly carried out.
They also questioned why some of the other suspects, whom they claimed were identified by victims and linked to financial transactions, were not produced before the court after allegedly failing to honour police invitations.
The parents further stated that one of the victims testified that Oluwatobiloba appeared to be assisting those affected rather than participating in the robbery.
They disclosed that after seeing a social media video linking him to the incident, their son voluntarily contacted the police and offered to present himself for questioning.
According to them, police officers informed him at the time that he was not regarded as a suspect.
Describing their son as a peaceful and law-abiding young man with no previous criminal record, the couple urged the UK authorities, legal institutions and human rights organisations to revisit the case.
They said they were devastated by the conviction and appealed for justice, insisting that their son was on the verge of being punished for an offence he did not commit.
“Our son is innocent of the charges against him. We appeal to the UK authorities to review the case and ensure that justice is done,” the parents said.
