Sowore Gets Fresh Bail After Two Weeks in Kuje Custody
The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday granted fresh bail to African Action Congress (AAC) chieftain and Sahara Reporters publisher, Omoyele Sowore, after spending about two weeks in custody at the Kuje Correctional Centre.
Delivering the ruling, Justice Mohammed Umar fixed the bail at N200 million and directed the defendant to produce two qualified sureties.
The judge said one surety must be a traditional ruler from Sowore’s community in Ese Odo Local Government Area of Ondo State, while the second must own landed property in the Federal Capital Territory.
Both are to be screened and confirmed by the prosecution.
The court also ordered Sowore to deposit his international passport with the Deputy Chief Registrar of the court as part of the conditions for his release.
Sowore was returned to custody on June 16 after the court revoked the bail earlier granted to him on self-recognition.
The decision followed his failure to appear before the court, prompting the issuance of a bench warrant for his arrest.
At Tuesday’s proceedings, Justice Umar rejected an application by the defence seeking his withdrawal from the case over claims of bias, ruling that the trial should continue before him.
The Department of State Services is prosecuting Sowore on charges of cybercrime and criminal defamation over social media posts in which he allegedly referred to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a “criminal.”
Following the bail ruling, defence counsel R. O. Adakole appealed to the court to temporarily release his client so he could retrieve his passport from the U.S. Embassy in Lagos before complying with the order to deposit it.
The matter was adjourned until July 6 for the continuation of trial proceedings.
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