After being detained by operatives of the Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre, Fisayo Soyombo, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the Foundation for Investigative Journalism, has been released on bail.
Accompanied by his organization’s lawyer, Abimbola Ojenike, Soyombo was granted bail at around 4:55 pm at the NPF-NCCC headquarters in Abuja.
Following his release, Soyombo revealed that he was initially unaware of the reason for his summons as the Force Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, had mentioned over 15 cases involving him and FIJ.
He was then questioned for approximately eight hours regarding a report on the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals, Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire.
Reflecting on the interrogation, Soyombo stated, “The situation was not particularly eventful. Despite earlier mentions of multiple allegations by Muyiwa Adejobi, the crux of the matter pertained to the Orelope Adefulire story, resulting in an eight-hour grilling.”
He also mentioned a bail condition mandating his bi-weekly reporting to the NPF-NCCC headquarters.
Soyombo emphasized, “This incident closely aligns with previous occurrences; Shonibare’s questioning and Daniel Ojukwu’s unlawful detainment following the same report. Now, on bail, I am required to appear here every fortnight.”
In a previous incident, Daniel Ojukwu, a reporter with the platform, was similarly apprehended by the center on May 1 and subsequently released ten days later amidst public outcry from media practitioners over identical allegations.