BEVERLY HILLS, September 21, (THEWILL) – The Federal Government has charged Omoleye Sowore, the convener of the RevolutionNow protest and publisher of Sahara Reporters with money laundering, treason and cyberstalking President Muhammadu Buhari.
Also charged in the 7-count charge filed at the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court in a suit marked FHC/ ABJ/CR/235/2019, is one Olawale Adebayo Bakare also known as Mandate.
The controversial activist, who was a presidential candidate in the last election has been in the custody of the DSS since his arrest in August following the ruling of the high court.
Government filed the charges barely 24 hours to the expiration of the detention order previously approved by Justice Taiwo Taiwo.
The charge which was signed on behalf of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), by a Chief State Counsel, Aminu Alilu, in the Department of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Federal Ministry of Justice, specifically accused Sowore and his co-defendant of conspiracy to commit treasonable felony in breach of section 516 of the Criminal Code Act by allegedly staging “a revolution campaign on September 5, 2019 aimed at removing the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
The prosecution also accused both males of committing the actual offence of treasonable felony in breach of section, 4(1)(c) of the Criminal Code Act, by using the platform of Coalition for Revolution, in August 2019 in Abuja, Lagos and other parts of Nigeria, to stage the #RevolutionNow protest allegedly aimed at removing the President.
Sowore was further accused of cybercrime offences in violation of section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention) Act, by “knowingly sending messages by means of press interview granted on Arise Television network which you knew to be false for the purpose of causing insult, enmity, hatred and ill-will on the person of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
It also accused Sowore of money laundering offences in breach of section 15(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011.
Rights groups and the media have called for his unconditional release.
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