Bail set at ₦10m for Sowore amid cybercrime allegations

A court has granted bail to Omoyele Sowore, convener of the #RevolutionNow movement, setting the amount at ₦10 million with one surety of the same sum.

The surety must be a responsible individual who owns landed property of equal value. Additionally, the original documents of the property and a passport-sized photograph must be submitted to the court registrar.

Delivering the ruling on the bail application, Justice Musa Liman directed Sowore to surrender his international passport to the court registrar. The judge further ruled that he must fulfil the bail conditions within 24 hours; otherwise, he would be placed in police custody until the conditions are met.

Sowore had presented himself at the Force Criminal Investigation Department on Monday, 27 January 2025, following a police invitation. While he was initially granted administrative bail, he refused the stipulated conditions and remained in detention. Subsequently, the police filed a 16-count charge against him under cybercrime laws.

One of the charges alleges that on 20 December 2024, Sowore referred to the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, as “the illegal IG of the Nigeria Police Force” in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) account. Another charge claims that he shared a photograph of Egbetokun with the caption: “Mediocrity, incompetence, corruption – a country run by characterless people cannot make progress.”

Additionally, the police accuse him of stating on his social media handle that “IGP Kayode Egbetokun will destroy the Nigeria Police if we don’t act now.”

Sowore has pleaded not guilty to all 16 charges brought against him.