‘He’d have travelled to Nigeria with me but for his exams- Dad of man killed by thugs in Dublin

The heartbreaking killing of 21-year-old Nigerian student Qayyum Balogun in Dublin, Ireland, has left his family in deep mourning and seeking answers. 

His grieving father lamented that the young man was to travel with him to Nigeria, which would have prevented his tragic fate, but the plan had to be shelved because of his exam.

Qayyum Balogun, a third-year Computer Science student at Maynooth University, was fatally stabbed on June 1, 2026, in a post-concert altercation with a pack of 14 thugs led by a man identified as Joshua Brodericks, a former business student of Atlantic Technological University.

A night of celebration Qayyum Balogun ends in tragedy

Upon conclusion of his exams, Qayyum Balogun reportedly travelled to Dublin with his sister, Aliyah, and a group of close friends to celebrate. 

An account indicated that a member of Balogun’s party bumped into Broderick on the stairs at the music concert at Bewley’s Café, and it degenerated into an altercation.

Broderick was initially said to be pacifying his group of young men who were charging at Balogun’s group. Balogun reportedly beckoned to the security of the facility for assistance.

The security men reportedly concluded that Broderick and his team were too intoxicated to remain in the facility and expelled them.

The aggrieved group then lingered outside in anger, waiting to exert their pound of flesh on Balogun’s team.

By the end of the concert, Balogun came out and saw Broderick at the front of the facility, spoiling for a fight and retreated into the facility.

He was reportedly assisted out through a back exit, without realising that some members of the Broderick gang were there as spotters, waiting for him.

The late Balogun later realised he was in trouble and took to his heels, but could not go far when he fell on the slippery ground on Clarendon Street, allowing a dozen men, allegedly led by Broderick, to descend on him.

While Broderick himself was not believed to hold a knife, other members of his team allegedly stabbed the victim multiple times.

The violent thugs allegedly attacked other members of Balogun’s team, namely, Oreoluwa Amosu, aged 24,  a friend of the deceased, and Chloe Scannell, 22, of Grafton Street, Dublin 2 after Broderick caught up with them in front of a shop and called his team.

Amosun was held with his T-shirt by Broderick while a member of his team reportedly swung a knife at him as well, but he was able to pull away and flee, with his T-shirt ripping apart.

Balogun’s sister, who went straight to their hotel room, was said to have been alarmed when her brother failed to return and tried calling him, only to be informed by a friend that her brother had been rushed to St. James’s Hospital, where medical staff later confirmed his passing.

Grieving parents describe a gentle future engineer

Speaking on the immense loss, Ibrahim Balogun, the victim’s father, expressed total disbelief over the location of the tragedy, noting that it was hard to believe his son would lose his life in Ireland after everything he had left behind in Nigeria. 

The father disclosed that the sad fate might have been averted if his son had travelled with him to Nigeria as originally planned.

The plan was only shelved to enable him to focus on his university examinations. 

His mother described him as a gentle, quiet, and exceptionally hardworking young man who loved video games and dreamed of building a successful career as a computer engineer.

Suspect flees the country as investigation continues

Irish law enforcement authorities revealed that the prime suspect in the killing is an amateur rapper in his early twenties. He was the person believed to have stabbed Balogun to death;

He fled from Ireland hours after the incident, crossing over to England. He is now being sought by law enforcement agents.

 A father appeals for justice and the truth

The young student was laid to rest on June 16 at the Newtown Cross Lawn Cemetery in Drogheda. 

In the wake of the burial, Ibrahim Balogun issued a direct emotional appeal to the fleeing suspect, urging him to return to Ireland and cooperate fully with homicide investigators. 

The family emphasised that they are simply searching for the absolute truth regarding the circumstances that led to the unprovoked and fatal attack on their son.

Leader of the pack of 14 arraigned

Brodericks has since been arraigned before Judge White. Homicide investigators stated that social media posts showed the accused, Joshua Broderick, had cut off his long-term dreadlocks shortly after the attack. 

Furthermore, a phone video recovered from an Airbnb accommodation booked by the accused showed a member of his group posing and posturing with a large knife in full view of Broderick before they left for the music venue. 

While the defence pointed out that official medical reports for the initial incident on Grafton Street were not yet available, police authorities maintained that the accused was centrally involved with all the primary suspects.

Despite the severity of the investigation, the court granted bail to the suspect, who was born and raised in Galway. 

Joshua Brodericks was released under a one-thousand-euro bond alongside an additional one-thousand-euro independent surety provided by his mother. 

Under the strict conditions of his release, the accused must sign in daily at a local police station, surrender his passport, maintain contact by phone at all times, and adhere to a strict night curfew between ten in the evening and seven in the morning.

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