A British-Nigerian man convicted over the abduction of his young son has reportedly fled the United Kingdom after prison authorities mistakenly released him from custody.
The convict, identified as Ifedayo Adedapo Kolawole Adeyeye, was serving a jail term at HMP Pentonville in London for abducting his five-year-old son from France and taking him to Nigeria.
According to reports, Adeyeye was initially sentenced to six months imprisonment for contempt of court after failing to return the child to his mother, Claire N’Djosse.
However, a UK court later imposed an additional 12-month sentence over related offences.
Despite the fresh sentence, prison officials mistakenly released him on April 21 after the new jail term was allegedly not properly recorded in the prison system.
Authorities reportedly realised the error two days later, by which time Adeyeye was believed to have fled the country.
British police have since launched a manhunt for the 57-year-old dual national, amid fears that he may have escaped to Spain or returned to Nigeria.
The case stems from the July 2024 abduction of Adeyeye’s son, Laurys N’Djosse Adeyeye, during the child’s first overnight visit with his father in France.
UK judge Mr Justice Hayden reportedly described the incident as “an act of cruelty” involving “complex, sophisticated, long-term planning and deception.”
The child’s mother is said to be devastated by the mistaken release, while UK authorities face mounting criticism over repeated prison administration failures.
Official figures reportedly show that dozens of prisoners have been wrongly released across the UK prison system in recent years.
British-Nigerian convict flees UK after mistaken prison release
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