Police detain journalist over report on Lagos businessman

Men of the Nigerian Police Force from the Zone 2 Command, Lagos State, have arrested a journalist and publisher of News Platform, Precious Eze.
The publisher of the online newspaper was said to have been picked up by policemen at his Gbagada, Lagos home on May 27, 2024.
His arrest, according to a statement by the journalist’s colleagues, was allegedly instigated by a complaint from a prominent businessman and politician.
The statement added that Eze’s colleagues, under the umbrella of the Society of Digital Newspaper Owners of Nigeria, learnt of his arrest after one week he had been detained and attempts to secure his release on bail proved abortive.
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According to them, Eze was arraigned on Thursday, May 30, before the Ebute Meta Magistrate Court to secure a remand order, which resulted in a judicial rebuke of the police’s action as the magistrate struck out the case, deeming it without merit and affirming that Eze had no case to answer.
They claimed that rather than grant Eze’s immediate release, the police returned him to custody and re-arraigned him before another magistrate on Friday, May 31, with the case adjourned to a future date in June.
The statement read, “This sequence of events is not just a personal ordeal for Precious Eze but a glaring assault on press freedom in Nigeria. The actions of the police, acting seemingly under the influence of a powerful individual, represent a blatant attempt to intimidate and silence the press. This undermines the very foundations of a democratic society, where journalists must be able to report freely and hold those in power accountable without fear of retribution