Nigerian College Basketball Player Arrested in US Over First-Degree R∆pe Charge
Nigerian College Basketball Player Arrested in US Over First-Degree Rape Charge
A 21-year-old Nigerian basketball player, Daniel Tobiloba Adegboyega, has been arrested in the United States and charged with first-degree rape following an alleged incident in Jacksonville, Alabama. Adegboyega, a member of the Jacksonville State University men’s basketball team, was taken into custody on July 29, 2026, and is currently being held at the Calhoun County Jail pending a bond hearing.
According to court documents, the charge stems from an alleged sexual assault that occurred on the night of July 28, 2026. Investigators with the Jacksonville Police Department stated that the victim, a female acquaintance, went to Adegboyega’s apartment around 11:30 p.m. to watch a movie. Approximately twenty minutes into the movie, the victim told police that Adegboyega began making unwanted sexual advances despite her repeatedly telling him to stop. The victim reportedly texted her roommate about the situation, and after several unanswered calls and texts, Adegboyega answered the roommate’s call on the victim’s phone, claiming the victim was in the bathroom. Concerned for her safety, the roommate contacted the Jacksonville Police Department for a welfare check. Officers arrived at the apartment around 2 a.m. and found the victim visibly upset. Police took statements from both parties and collected evidence, including the victim’s pants which reportedly had bloodstains. The victim told investigators that Adegboyega forcibly raped her twice that evening. Adegboyega denied using any force but was arrested and has remained in custody since.
Under Alabama state law, first-degree rape is classified as a Class A felony, which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. The arrest warrant charges that Adegboyega “engage(d) in sexual intercourse with [the alleged victim] by forcible compulsion.” He is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
In addition to the criminal charges, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has placed an immigration hold on Adegboyega. An ICE agent testified during a bond hearing that Adegboyega entered the United States on an F-1 student visa that expired in 2023. If granted bond, he would be transferred to an immigration detention facility in Louisiana, where he would face an immigration judge and likely be deported to Nigeria. If bond is denied, immigration proceedings would not begin until his release. However, Adegboyega’s host father, Ryan Parlee, disputed the immigration information presented in court, claiming it was inaccurate. Parlee stated that Adegboyega attended high school in Iowa for four years, graduating in 2022, and never returned to Nigeria. He explained that a family trip to Mexico in 2022 triggered the immigration documentation, and that Adegboyega’s previous schools had been handling his paperwork, but UC Riverside allegedly failed to file the necessary documents, causing his visa to lapse. The issue reportedly came to light when Adegboyega transferred to Jacksonville State University this summer.
Jacksonville State University has suspended Adegboyega indefinitely from the men’s basketball team, and his profile has been removed from the university’s athletics website. In a statement, the university said it was aware of the arrest and confirmed the student’s suspension, adding that the alleged incident did not occur on campus and remains under investigation by the Jacksonville Police Department.
Adegboyega, a 7-foot center, joined Jacksonville State in May 2026 after spending the previous season at the University of California, Riverside. He had earlier played for the University of South Florida and signed with Kennesaw State in 2022, although he did not feature for the program. He has played in 27 total games with five starts in his college career, averaging 0.7 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. The judge presiding over the bond hearing has 48 hours to decide whether to grant bail. As of the time of this report, no decision has been made, and Adegboyega remains in custody.
