Oladapo Ogundipe, the father of a British-born Nigerian lady said to have committed suicide over repeated physical abuse and blackmail allegedly from her boyfriend, has demanded comprehensive investigation into the death of the 26-year-old Alanis Ogundipe

Alanis was said to have jumped in front of a moving train on May 29, 2023 at a station in Manchester, United Kingdom.

Ogundipe, who was in tears, said his daughter’s predicament started when her boyfriend, Ryan Leggetts, whom she met in 2022, infected her with Herpes, which the daughter saw as a stigma and decided to keep it a secret.

Addressing journalists in Lagos on Monday, Ogundipe called on the UK police and the Nigerian High Commission in the UK to intervene, stating he strongly suspected foul play in the alleged suicide death.

He said: “Ryan met my daughter in June 2022 and less than one month into the relationship; he already said he wanted to marry her and took her to his mother. As the director of my company, we planned to send her 100,000 pounds meant for a particular investment in the UK. When Ryan perhaps knew about this, he started asking for her bank statements on May 13 and started shouting at her.

“After she refused to give it to him, he waited till May 28, 2023, after he had found out that her passport was required for this money to be sent.”

The distraught father alleged that Ryan broke into his daughter’s phone after stealing the password while she was sleeping and copied her private information which he then proceeded to blackmail her with.

“Ryan lied to the police in his witness statement on the 15th of August 2023 after admitting to me and showing me evidence in writing on the 7th June 2023 that he stole Alanis’s password and had blackmailed Alanis until she died on the 29th May 2023,” he stressed.

The bereaved father explained that his British wife and Alanis’ mother, Josephine, who witnessed the conversation had not been invited, neither was Leggetts arrested, adding that the police only based their findings on Leggetts’ statement.

“In the course of getting justice for my late daughter, a coroner’s inquest into the cause of her death was not properly done fueling further my suspicion that the police had handled the matter.

“At the inquest, the lawyer representing my family, while acting on the instruction of my wife, Josephine, told the court not to allow me to present my evidence, which I was later allowed after insistence,” he added.

The aggrieved father said he made allegations of murder and manslaughter against Ryan to the police in the UK because he allegedly inflicted emotional and psychological injury upon his daughter from August 1, 2022 till death in 2023.

“I call on the UK authorities to carry out a thorough investigation into these matters to ensure that justice is served for my daughter. If the police do not wish to investigate then a private legal team will take up the case since there is no time limit for prosecution of crimes such as murder and manslaughter,” he said.

According to him, if Ryan Leggetts is not punished, he will still go ahead and do similar things to another innocent girl. (The Nation)

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