An Abuja High Court, Wuse 2 on Tuesday granted bail to Tim Elombah, brother to Daniel Elombah who was unlawfully arrested by men of the Nigeria Police Force in Anambra State on New Year’s Day.
The Presiding Judge, Justice Ajoke ordered for his immediate release within 24 hours with one reasonable Surety with
N500,000 in like sum.
The Fundamental right application and N1b damages against the Inspector General of Police and the Nigeria Police Force was filed by Tim’s lawyers on January 10, 2018.
Yesterday, January 22, 2018, marked twenty-one (21) days since the elombah.com editor has been arrested by the Nigerian Police beyond a remand order granted by Grade 1 Area Court sitting in Mpape, Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
OsunDefender recalls that the elombah.com Editor was arrested alongside his brothers from their family house in Edoji-Uruagu Nnewi, Anambra State, Eastern Nigeria in the wee hours of New Year’s day.
The online journalists were arrested over an article titled “IGP Ibrahim Idris’s Unending Baggage of Controversies”, written by Ebiowei Dickson on social media network, Instagram and believed to have been published on elombah.com.
We had also informed you that the publisher of elombah.com, was released late Monday night, January 1 but the Editor was remanded in police custody for seven (7) days pending the completion of the police investigation and filing a former charge.
In our report, we stated that Tim might spend more days in detention because there was a plot to get a remand to keep the elombah.com editor for twenty (20) more days.
Few hours after the report went viral on social media, the police approached the court seeking an order to remand Tim in prison custody for a period of fourteen (14) days pending the completion of police investigation and filing a former charge but the court only granted seven (7) days to the police to be resumed on January 9, 2018.
The detention of the elombah.com editor expired on Monday, January 7 but the Nigerian Police has continued to detain Mr. Elombah illegally despite requests by both international and local civil organisations for his release.
SOURCE: OSUN DEFENDER
