Chaos in Kuje as Police Re-Arrest, Assault Sowore Moments After Being Granted Bail

Chaos erupted outside the Kuje Magistrate Court in Abuja on Friday when Nigerian Police officers allegedly assaulted and forcefully re-arrested human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, moments after he and 13 others were granted bail.

The incident occurred as Sowore’s legal team was in the process of perfecting his bail conditions, which had been set at N500,000 with requirements including the submission of his passport and three-year tax clearance certificates.

Witnesses on the court premises reported that police officers, led by the Investigating Police Officer (IPO), CSP Ilyasu Barau (OC Anti-Vice, FCT Command), suddenly pounced on Sowore.

He was allegedly punched, dragged on the ground, and violently forced into a waiting police van as he resisted. The police also reportedly attacked his lawyers.

Witnesses accused the police of disregarding the magistrate’s bail ruling and attempting to detain Sowore under questionable circumstances. When onlookers and lawyers demanded to see the remand order the officers claimed to possess, the police allegedly refused to produce any document.

The officers claimed they were acting on a “secret remand order” authorizing Sowore’s transfer to the Kuje Correctional Centre, a claim that contradicts the fact that the magistrate had just issued a bail order without mentioning any remand.

Sowore, along with Aloy Ejimakor (counsel for Nnamdi Kanu) and 11 others, was arrested earlier this week for leading a #FreeNnamdiKanuNow protest in the Federal Capital Territory, leading to charges of unlawful assembly and disturbance of public peace. His initial arrest on Thursday, which was captured on video, had already drawn widespread criticism from human rights groups and international observers concerned about the suppression of dissent and judicial processes in Nigeria.