Treasonable Felony: Court orders remand of Sowore, co-defendant in DSS custody
The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered that the convener of RevolutionNow protest, Mr. Omoyele Sowore should be remanded in custody of the Department of State Service, DSS, till Friday when it will hear his bail application.
Trial Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu made the order, Monday, remanding Sowore and his co-defendant, Olawale Adebayo Bakare , after they had pleaded not guilty to a seven-count charge the Federal Government preferred against them.
Earlier, the court had asked the defendants to choose between Kuje and Suleja prisons but Sowore’s lawyer, Mr. Olumide Fusika, SAN, prayed the court to allow them to remain in the custody of the DSS till the next adjourned date.
It was drama as Sowore was being ushered out of the courtroom, he struggled to address the press, but was forcefully dragged away from the press by DSS operatives.
He, however, kept chanting and urging Nigerians to rise against bad governance, as he was being whisked away by security agents amid protest from some of his supporters that attended the proceeding.
Sowore had after he mounted the dock, declined to enter their plea to the charge, challenging the legal propriety of his arraignment when the DSS refused to obey an order the court made for his immediate release from detention.
Recall that the publisher of an online media platform, Sahara Reporters and Presidential candidate of African Action Congress (AAC) has been in detention since August 2, 2019 for calling for a nationwide protest against perceived maladministration by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government.
In the charge marked FHC/ ABJ/CR/235/2019, FG accused of conspiracy, money laundering, cyber-stalking and insulting President Buhari.
NewsTrack had reported that Sowere had dismissed DSS Motion to continue to hold Sowere in her Custody; Breaking: Court strikes out DSS Motion, orders immediate release of Sowore.
For an undisclosed reason, DSS could not obey the the Judge, Justice Taiwo’s order, an act that drew so condemnation from sections of the public.
