Nigerian Police Covertly Detain, Arraign Journalist
Nigerian police have accused a detained journalist – during a secret court hearing – of criminal trespass and stealing police documents, it was reported on Thursday.
The journalist, Samuel Ogundipe, from the independent online news outlet Premium Times, has been detained since his arrest on Tuesday, after reporting on masked security agents who took over parliament last week.
Ogundipe said: “They brought me to a magistrate court in Kubwa where they arraigned me. The magistrate said they should detain me for five days.”
Masked armed operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) entered the Senate and House of Representatives on 7 August and blocked lawmakers, workers, journalists and members of the public from entering.
No official explanation was given for the incident but many speculate it was political posturing for elections in February next year.
Local and international rights organisations have called for Ogundipe’s immediate release. He is to remain in custody until his next hearing on 20 August.
