Arrested at 17, David Amadi has spent nearly three decades behind bars as his 75-year-old mother insists he was jailed without evidence and pleads for government intervention.

A 75-year-old widow from Imo State, Nigeria Mrs. Celestina Amadi, has made an emotional appeal for the release of her son, David Amadi, who has spent 28 years in prison following a death sentence for an alleged robbery she maintains he did not commit.

David was just 17 when he was arrested in 1998. Now 45, he remains incarcerated after exhausting all legal avenues, including appeals that upheld his conviction. His mother insists his arrest and trial were marred by injustice from the outset.

Recounting the incident, Mrs. Amadi said her son was picked up by police while attending a dance event in Uzoagba and later apprehended at a funeral. “He was dragged out, beaten and taken away to Owerri,” she said, adding that she was on the farm at the time. The shock of the arrest, she noted, contributed to her husband’s death from hypertension.

She said police searched their home after the arrest but found nothing linking David to any crime. Another suspect, Ikechi, was also arrested, while a third man, Matthew, was picked up in Port Harcourt and allegedly forced under duress to implicate the others.

According to Mrs. Amadi, the prosecution failed to provide evidence placing her son at the scene of the robbery. She added that the complainant reportedly told the court the attackers wore masks, raising doubts about identification.

Despite this, a High Court in Orlu, presided over by Justice Ukachukwu, sentenced the accused men to death—a verdict later affirmed by both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

The widow described years of hardship, including a prolonged period of detention without trial. She recalled troubling scenes during proceedings, alleging that one of the co-accused showed signs of severe distress in court while insisting on his innocence.

Today, the three men remain in separate correctional facilities in Port Harcourt and Lagos. Mrs. Amadi said her family struggles to support her son with basic needs and has run out of legal options.

Now, she is calling on the Imo State Government to intervene. “We are pleading for help. My son is innocent. We just want him home,” she said.

Rejecting any suggestion of reconciliation with the complainant, she said the pain of the past nearly three decades remains raw. “How do you reconcile when your child has been taken from you like this?” she asked.

Despite the years lost, the family says it is ready to rebuild David’s life if he is released. His elder brother, Innocent, has pledged full support, even offering to sell his car to help him start afresh.

Families of the other convicted men are also seeking a review of the case, hoping renewed public attention could open the door to justice after nearly three decades.