Matthew Onocheta
Nigeria’s secret police, the Department of State Services (DSS) released Adejuwon Soyinka, an investigative journalist and Pioneer Editor of the BBC Pidgin Service on Sunday afternoon after public outcry, following his arrest at Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Lagos.
Soyinka, the West African Regional Editor of the Conversation Africa, was arrested upon his arrival from the United Kingdom via a Virgin Atlantic flight around 5.40am.
A concerned friend of Soyinka said he sent a distress message, stating that he was taken into custody shortly after he arrived from the United Kingdom, without being informed of the reason for his arrest, and has since been held in isolation without access to communication.
The message sent reads “Adejuwon Soyinka has been detained by officers of the Department of State Security at the Muritala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
“The incident happened around 5.40 am on Sunday, the 25th of August, 2024, shortly after he arrived in Nigeria via a Virgin Atlantic flight from the United Kingdom.”
The spokesperson of the DSS, Peter Afunanya, had denied the arrest.
However, the DSS agreed to release him on bail, through the efforts of the International Press Institute (IPI) Nigeria, which intervened on his behalf.
As part of his bail conditions, the agency seized his passport and asked him to provide his Nigerian address and reliable phone number through which he can be reached anytime.
Adejuwon himself confirmed his release.
“I have just been released by the DSS in Lagos. They are holding on to my passport, though. I am on an Uber ride ordered for me by the Deputy Director of DSS in Lagos. I will speak better when I get home,”. he stated.