Eniola Adenuga, son of telecoms mogul, Mike Adenuga has gotten into a clash with his Babymama Damilola over the custody of their child, Athena.
According to the Punch, Damilola has accused Eniola of abducting their daughter
Things had been all well and good until Friday, May 18, 2018 when Damilola went to pick her daughter from school only to be stopped by Eniola who refused to give up custody of the child.
The two dated during which time Damilola got pregnant. Things didn’t work out and a court awarded custody of the child to her mother but her father was given access with the arrangement being that he had her over the weekends while the mother had her during the week.
Damilola, through her lawyers, petitioned the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Edgal Imohimi, stating that Eniola kidnapped their daughter.
According to the Punch, the petition read in part: “On Friday, May 18, 2018, our client dropped off Athena at school (Marymount School, Rachael Nwagwu Street, Lekki) around 8.30am, as usual. About 2pm same day, our client returned to the said school to pick up her daughter. To our client’s dismay, the school told her that Mr Eniola Adenuga in company with some mobile policemen came to the school and forcefully took Athena away without her school bag.
“Our client immediately called Mr Eniola Adenuga to find out why he took the child away without her consent, contrary to the order of court that our client remain in custody of Athena and access given to Mr Adenuga every week from Friday to Sunday in company with Athena’s nanny.
“Mr Adenuga did not take the calls or respond to message sent to him by our client till date, safe for his one sentence response that he had taken Athena. Till date, our client does not know the whereabouts of Athena and has confirmed from the school that Athena is not in school.
“Our client is distressed as the conduct of Mr Eniola Adenuga is likely to cause a breach of public peace.”
Damilola has stated that the incident did happen and that she just wants her child back
According to the Punch, a representative of Eniola who claimed to be his lawyer said there was no case as he picked up the child on a Friday.
He said: “What he did cannot be said to be illegal. He has every right to his child. The child was born after a relationship between the parties, which did not work out. If not for the case in court, this matter would not have got to this level.
“There is an application before the court for an extended custody. Midway into that, the case was reassigned because they (Damiola’s lawyers) wrote a petition (against the magistrate). The case has been transferred without a ruling on Eniola’s application (for extended custody).
“Usually, he takes the child on Friday and returns her on Sunday. So, the child was taken on Friday, but on the Wednesday/Thursday preceding that Friday, the case was transferred. So, already, the child is with Eniola. The transfer coincided with that time; so, the thing is hanging.
“He took the child on the Friday that he usually picks her. Later that Friday, the (court) registrar called and said the case had been transferred to Ikeja (court). Ikeja needs to assign it to a new judge, who will go over the case file.”