On Thursday, the Federal High Court granted bail to Chude Nnamdi, a social media influencer, after his arraignment on a charge of cyberstalking a business mogul, Emeka Offor.
He was granted bail in the sum of N10 million by the judge, Gladys Olotu, who ordered him to produce one surety, who must be a level 14 civil servant or a resident of the FCT with verified landed property, as part of the bail conditions.
This follows after Nnamdi was arraigned on a cyberstalking charge but however denied the charge.
The Inspector-General of Police charged Mr Nnamdi as the only defendant in the case marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/130/2023.
In the amended charge dated and filed on 17 April, the police alleged that Mr Nnamdi, on 13 March knowingly and intentionally sent a message through a tweet from his Twitter handle ‘Chude’ by means of computer system and network.
“That you know to be false for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred, ill will or needless anxiety to the person of Dr. Emeka Offor and thereby commit cyberstalking punishable under Section 24 (1)(b) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) ACT, 2015.”
Mr Offor, whom the defendant allegedly cyberstalked, wields a lot of influence within business and political circles.
Earlier when the matter was called for arraignment, the prosecuting counsel, Victor Okoye, informed that he had an amended charge.
Mr Okoye, therefore, made an oral application to substitute the initial charge filed in March with the new charge. But Gabriel Chikwado-Eze, who appeared for Mr Ndamdi, opposed the request.
Mr Chikwado-Eze argued that Mr Okoye could not arraign Nnamdi on the fresh charge, having not been served with it earlier.
He added that since the existing charge had not been served on them, Mr Okoye could not validly amend it.
Mr Okoye disagreed with Chikwado-Eze on the ground that Nnamdi had never been arraigned before.
But the judge, Ms Olotu, granted the application by directing Mr Nnamdi to be arraigned on the fresh charge. The defendant pled not guilty, and the prosecutor applied that he be remanded in prison pending the conclusion of the trail.
But Chikwado-Eze objected to the application on the grounds that the offence, which he was charge with, was a bailable offence under the law.
He also argued that Mr Nnamdi had been on administrative bail for over a month and had not flouted the bail.conditions.
The lawyer urged the court to grant him bail.
The judge granted the request and adjourned the matter until 17 May.
NAN reports that Mr Nnamdi was arrested in Anambra and transported to Abuja by officers attached to the police cybercrime unit.
The police later said the matter was linked to a tweet by Mr Nnamdi that allegedly cast Mr Offor, a billionaire businessman, in an odious light.
In the tweet, the defendant claimed that Mr Offor had been engaged by the president-elect to beg Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate, to accept the result of the 25 February election.
The tweet read: “So @officialBAT called Emeka Offor to beg Peter Obi to accept the rigged result.
“If he is sure the people voted for APC and he won the election, why is he running around pleading with everyone to help beg Peter Obi to accept the result?”
