Human rights activist and former Nigerian presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has reportedly sustained a broken arm after an alleged violent encounter with police officers, who subsequently moved him to an undisclosed location early Thursday morning.
Sowore, who had voluntarily honoured a police invitation at the Force Intelligence Department (FID) in Abuja on Wednesday, was allegedly assaulted and relocated in secret around 6:00 a.m., according to sources familiar with the situation.
“His hand was broken this morning when a Chief Superintendent of Police working with Muyiwa Adejobi came to take him away forcefully,” a source revealed to SaharaReporters. “They attempted to move him without his clothes. When he resisted, insisting on dressing up, the officer injured him in the scuffle.”
Sowore’s arrest comes amid growing criticism of the Nigeria Police Force over increasing cases of human rights violations and suppression of dissent. His sudden relocation has sparked fears for his safety.
On Wednesday, the SaharaReporters publisher had arrived at the Force Headquarters in Abuja with a travel bag packed with essentials — a symbolic act suggesting he was prepared for detention. He was accompanied by his legal team, Barristers A.K. Musa and Marshal Abubakar, and dozens of supporters chanting anti-government songs.
Defective Invitation, Disputed Charges
Prior to his detention, Sowore had publicly rejected the
police invitation, describing it as “legally flawed and defective.” Originally accused of “inciting disturbance” — a charge not recognised under Nigerian law — the allegations were later changed to forgery and criminal defamation.While in custody, he was served two petitions. The first accused him of forgery, while the second — reportedly filed by Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Bukola Yemisi Kuti, whom sources link romantically to the Inspector General of Police — accused him of criminal defamation.
“The notorious former SARS officer, DCP Akin Fakorede, presented the petitions from the illegal office of the IGP,” Sowore posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account. “One was on alleged forgery, the other from Bukola Yemisi Kuti alleging criminal defamation.”
DCP Fakorede, formerly with the disbanded SARS unit, is a controversial figure known for past human rights complaints.
Mounting Outrage and Call for Release
Shortly after his detention, members of the Take It Back Movement and other allied activist groups issued a two-hour ultimatum to the Nigeria Police, demanding his immediate release or face nationwide protest actions.
Critics and legal observers have labelled the incident as yet another example of Nigeria’s deteriorating human rights landscape under a climate of authoritarian policing and political intimidation.
The Nigeria Police Force has yet to make an official statement regarding Sowore’s condition or current location.
