Human Rights Lawyer Farotimi Remanded for Alleged Cyberbullying

On Wednesday, December 4, a Chief Magistrates Court situated in Ekiti State, Ado Ekiti Division, directed the remand of human rights lawyer Dele Farotimi in the state’s correctional centre.

Farotimi was charged in court over alleged character assassination following his book, ‘Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System,’ where he alleged, among others, that a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Afe Babalola, had compromised the Supreme Court.

Chief Magistrate Abayomi Adeosun, after paying attention to the police prosecutor, Samson Osubu, who filed a 16-count accusation to which Farotimi pleaded not guilty, postponed the issue till December 10, 2024.

Farotimi was apprehended in Lagos on Monday by policemen from Ekiti State and whisked to Ado Ekiti, following which he was summoned to court on Wednesday.

Adeosun said, “The accused should file a formal application for bail. The matter is postponed till Tuesday, December 10, 2024. The accused is hereby ordered remanded at the Correctional Centre, Ado Ekiti.”

According to an interview with journalists on Tuesday, December 3, 2024, Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Adeniran Akinwale, defended Farotimi’s apprehension for alleged cyberbullying and character assassination.

The CP affirmed the crimes allegedly committed by Farotimi included “assassination of character, cyberstalking, and other things,” stating that those two accusations were “fully established.”

He said, “We are probing him (Farotimi). If the culprit is apprehended, we will bring him in for investigation. We will conduct our investigation and will be able to know his level of culpability or otherwise.”