The Nigeria Police Force has called out Andrew Wynne, a British national who has been declared wanted, to come out of hiding and surrender to authorities. The call came on Tuesday, following Wynne’s denial that he was ever invited by the police before being declared a fugitive.
Wynne and his Nigerian associate, Lucky Obiyan, were declared wanted for allegedly plotting to overthrow President Bola Tinubu’s government. The police have also placed a N20 million bounty on their heads. Wynne, appearing on Channels Television’s “Politics Today” on Monday, claimed he was unaware of his fugitive status.
Force spokesperson Muyiwa Adejobi, speaking to journalists in Abuja, refuted Wynne’s claims, stating that the police made several attempts to contact him, all of which were ignored.
He said, “He (Wynne) has been contacted several times. He has been so faceless. We went to invade that bookshop. As he asked questions, he came out. If you have a genuine business, are you not going to ask the police what we went to do in his shop or his office?
“Up till now, he has not shown up. We have been able to trace his private school. We visited his school; has he shown up? We have interrogated staff and people working with him. Has he shown up? So where is he and why is he hiding and speaking from hiding that he has no case to answer?
“As I said, it is not a subject of debate or argument. We have done what we should as a responsible security institution.”
The police spokesperson emphasized that there are established offences against Wynne and noted that his accomplices have already been arraigned in court. He challenged Wynne to “come out of hiding and face the wrath of the law like his accomplices,” adding that a remote Zoom interrogation, as suggested by Wynne, would not be accepted given the severity of the charges.
He said, “We have established an offence or offences against him, and we have even declared him wanted. His accomplices have been charged in court.
“Let him come out. At least those people worked for him. As a good leader, as a businessman, as a smart man who mobilised and organised sleeper cells to cause problems in Nigeria.
“He should have come out as a good leader. So let him prove to his followers that he is a good leader. Let him come and meet us.”
Adejobi said the Zoom interrogation suggested by Wynne would not be accepted by the police based on the gravity of the allegations preferred against him.
He said, “We have questions to ask him. This is a guy who has been travelling out of Nigeria frequently. Why is it difficult for him to come down? Who is going to take a Zoom meeting for a suspect in this kind of offence? No.
“Let him come. I am still calling him again. Let him come. Suppose he’s a good man. If he is a genuine businessman in Nigeria, let Andrew Wynne report to the police so that he can come and clear some grey areas.”
