Late Adebayo Faleti’s Unforgettable Encounter With Robbers

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The late Alagba Adebayo Faleti was a celebrated actor and playwright. He, indeed, paid his dues in the entertainment industry; he was also a great promoter of Yoruba’s socio-cultural heritage and tradition. Sunday, July 23rd was the day the man whose name was a household one in the world of movies exited to the great beyond and the Yoruba nation and the entertainment world lost an illustrious son. While several things had been said about the late actor, not many have, however, mentioned the fact that he was a man who was not chicken-hearted.

Global Excellence learned that whilst he was agile, the late Faleti was accustomed to traveling on a short notice. A source told Global Excellence about an incident recorded in April 2004; the septuagenarian was, according to the source bound for Ilorin in furtherance of his bid to provide the needed market drive for his then newly released movie ‘Bashorun Gaa’.

The late Faleti left Ibadan in company of his son, Gboyega and another actor without a premonition of possible attack. The journey had been smooth until they got to a place near Oyo town which incidentally is the hometown of the acting impresario. Far ahead of them were people lying face down and the late actor had instantly ordered the driver to pull over; thinking it was an accident scene as he had wanted to help in rescuing the assumed victims. However, when he got it clear that they were armed robbers, he had ordered the driver to let them leave the scene but the driver was nowhere to be found as he had disappeared into the thin air! He was still trying to get himself composed when he was ordered to alight from the car by one of the robbers, but that the baba would not do. Like a dogged strength of a lion, he gave the young guy a beating of his life. Apparently confused, shocked and bewildered by the way the old man dealt blow on him, Global Excellence learned that the man simply retreated and got hold of a big stick with which he was said to have used in hitting him on the head. At that point, papa beckoned to the dare devil chaps to take whatever they want, his handset and other items were said to have been collected and taken away by the men of the underworld. The leader of the robbers, however, returned to apologise to Pa Faleti and he openly scolded the member of the robbery team who beat the old man for beating such a person. He was quoted to have said aloud ‘Don’t you know him? Why should you have beaten him? The man was not through yet as he also had words for Pa Faleti, he warned him not to henceforth struggle with men in action as it could be fatal. Global Excellence gathered that Baba was thereafter taken to a hospital in Oyo where his head was stitched and given the needed medical attention before returning to Ibadan.