Peter Nicholas, a 26-year-old graduate of Mass Communication from Akwa Ibom State Polytechnic, found himself imprisoned for 10 months at Keffi Correctional Centre after resigning from his job via text message.
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/TheNigerialawyer-WhatsApp-Channel1.jpg")
Nicholas, who had been working as a photographer and photo editor at an Abuja-based studio owned by businessman Mike Oluwole, sent a text message on October 10, 2023, stating that he was no longer interested in working at the studio.
According to Nicholas, he had secured the job after impressing Oluwole with his photography skills during a camera lens sale. Despite being put on probation for six months with a monthly salary of N70,000, Nicholas decided to resign less than three months into the role due to a better offer elsewhere and dissatisfaction with his boss’s treatment of a colleague.
However, Nicholas’s decision to resign via text message, coupled with a subsequent message advising Oluwole to improve his leadership and management skills, led to his arrest on October 15. Oluwole accused Nicholas of insulting him, although Nicholas denies this allegation.
After being charged at the Upper Area Court in Mpape, Abuja, Nicholas was granted bail of N100,000, later reduced to N50,000. Unable to raise the funds, he was sent to Keffi Correctional Centre, where he endured a harrowing 10-month ordeal. Nicholas described his experience as “terrible,” recounting how he slept on the floor, went without bathing for months due to a lack of funds to purchase water, and shared a cell with 109 other inmates, including hardened criminals.
Despite the harsh conditions, Nicholas found solace in playing the keyboard at the prison’s church, which led to a chaplain taking an interest in his case. However, he refrained from informing his parents, who reside in Akwa Ibom, about his incarceration due to his mother’s underlying health conditions and strained relationship with his father.
Oluwole further alleged that Nicholas had stolen the company’s phone, a claim Nicholas denies, stating that he had resigned before the phone was reported missing. Although Nicholas admitted to having spent six weeks in prison previously over a misunderstanding with a friend, he maintains his innocence in the current case.
Nicholas’s eventual release came after the intervention of the Hope Behind Bars Africa Foundation, an Abuja-based organization that learned of his plight through a friend he had contacted from prison. The foundation’s efforts led to his freedom after the Upper Area Court in Abuja became non-functional.
Reflecting on his ordeal, Nicholas expressed his disbelief at the time lost and the mental toll the experience had taken on him. He believes his ex-boss’s actions were oppressive and is now focused on rebuilding his life and photography career. Since his release, Nicholas has reconciled with his father and visited his former boss, who provided him with N20,000 to help him get back on his feet.
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