The Nigerian police have filed cybercrime charges against activist lawyer Dele Farotimi, following the allegation of criminal defamation levelled against him by Afe Babalola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and founder of Afe Babalola University Ado Ekiti (ABUAD).
The police already charged Mr Farotimi with 16 counts of criminal defamation of the top lawyer before a chief magistrate’s court in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State.
The case stemmed from a petition by Mr Babalola alleging that Mr Farotimi defamed him in his book, ‘Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System’.
Mr Babalola cited 31 excerpts from the book, including one accusing him of corrupting the Nigerian Supreme Court to procure a fraudulent judgement in the service of his clients.
The office of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), through, S.O Osobi, filed 12 counts of cybercrimes against Mr Farotimi at the Federal High Court in Ado Ekiti, on Friday.
The new charges largely focus on Mr Farotimi’s comments in online interviews reiterating allegations made in his book, whereas the case before the chief magistrate’s court centred on excerpts from the book.
One of the counts accused Mr Farotimi of intentionally transmitting communication which he knew to be false information “for the purpose of causing breakdown of law and order thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 24(1) (b) of Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act 2015 as amended.”
The filing of the fresh charges came barely two days after the police arraigned the activist before a chief magistrate’s court in Ado Ekiti, following Mr Babalola’s petition to the Ekiti State Police Command, accusing the author of defaming him.
The police preferred 16 counts of criminal defamation against Mr Farorimi, who pleaded not guilty to all of them during his arraignment before the chief magistrate’s court on Wednesday.
The trial chief magistrate, Abayomi Adeosun, ordered that the defendant be remanded in the Ado Ekiti correctional centre for him to file a formal bail application.
He adjourned the case till Tuesday, 10 December, for the court to hear the bail application.
The prosecution, Samson Otsubu, had asked the court to remand Mr Farotimi in prison, while investigations continued.
It is still unclear if the police will eventually drop the magistrate’s court case or they will pursue the two simultaneously.
Fresh charges
Some of the counts read: “That you Dele Farotimi ‘m’ on 28th August 2024 knowingly and intentionally transmitted communication in an online interview on Mic On Podcast by Seun Okinbaloye on your YouTube Channel in respect of a book authored and published by you titled: “Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System” wherein you stated in the interview that: “Aare Afe Babalola corrupted the judiciary” which you know to be false information for the purpose of causing breakdown of law and order thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 24(1) (b) of Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act 2015 as amended.
“COUNT II: That you Dele Farotimi ‘m’ on 28th August 2024 knowingly and intentionally transmitted communication in an online interview on Mic On Podcast by Seun Okinbaloye on your Youtube Channel in respect of a book authored and published by you titled: “Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System” wherein you stated in the interview that “Aare Afe Babalola corrupted the judiciary” with the intention of bullying and harassing the named persons thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 24 (a) of Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act 2015 as amended.
“COUNT III: That you Dele Farotimi ‘m’ on 2nd December, 2024 intentionally sent a message in the course of a press conference held on Online on your YouTube Channel where you stated that: “It came to my knowledge that there is a charge preferred before a court in Ekiti State against me at the instance of Chief Afe Babalola.”
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