Renowned human rights lawyer Dele Farotimi has reportedly been arrested by operatives of the Nigerian Police Force. This claim was brought to public attention by Omoyele Sowore, a former presidential candidate for the African Action Congress in 2023. Sowore made the revelation through his verified X (formerly Twitter) account on Tuesday.
In his post, Sowore criticized the alleged use of the police for settling personal grievances, urging immediate action.
He stated, “It is pertinent that the Nigerian police are notified that the institution cannot continue to be used to settle personal scores, and we, the citizens of Nigeria, would no longer tolerate such a situation. Therefore, the police at Zone 2 in Lagos are advised to release Barrister Dele Farotimi immediately.”
However, conflicting information has emerged regarding the arrest. Speaking to PUNCH Online, SP Ummar Ayuba, the police spokesperson for Zone 2 Command, denied the claim, stating, “We did not make any arrest. He is not in our custody.”
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police in Ekiti State, Mr. Adeniran Akinwale, confirmed that Farotimi is under investigation for multiple offences, including defamation of character and cyberstalking. Akinwale clarified that these charges had been substantiated enough to justify pursuing Farotimi for questioning.
“We are investigating him. If the suspect is arrested, we will bring him for investigation. We will conduct our investigation and will be able to know his level of culpability or otherwise,” the commissioner explained.
