The Nigeria Police Force has threatened to arrest Adebisi Adewole, a Lagos resident, for reporting a case of social injustice he experienced to the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ).
Adewole told FIJ the police called on Thursday, promising to pick him up at any time, starting Monday. He said the caller claimed this was because he did not honour the police’s invitation, although this was not exactly the case.
HOW IT HAPPENED
On January 2, FIJ published a report on how Abi Otedola’s AirJara Travel and Tours collected N1,728,000 from Adewole for a Canadian work permit in March 2022, but neither gave him the work permit nor refunded him.
Two days after the publication, Ayodeji Akande, who identified as a lawyer, demanded a public apology and a payment of N1 billion in damages from Adewole.
READ MORE: Lawyer Demands N1bn From Lagos Man for Revealing Abi Otedola, AirJara’s N1.7m Debt
In a pre-action letter dated January 2, AirJara headlined ‘pre-action letter for cyber-stalking’, a travel firm, accused the source and FIJ’s Uti of orchestrating a malicious campaign to tarnish their reputation. They claimed the publications were defamatory, incited public disdain, and caused emotional and psychological trauma to Abi Otedola, the founder of the travel agency.
“Our client’s attention has been drawn to an online publication dated 2nd January 2025 by one Fisayo Soyombo aka Emmanuel Uti of the Foundation for Investigative Journalism captioned Abi Otedola ‘s AirJara Vanishes With N1.7m Million Lagos Man Paid For Canadian Work Permit 3 Years Ago,” the letter reads in part.
“The paragraphs in the storyline and the captions by them were targeted to incite the members of the public against our clients, to intimidate them and to cause public disorder, state of anarchy and chaos in the Air Travel and Tours business at large.
“The publication has resulted in insomnia, our client could no longer sleep because the scandalous publication has caused the management loss of reputation and integrity. The writers, in addition also maliciously and mischievously painted our clients as fraudulent people who defraud their clients.
READ MORE: Abi Otedola’s Airjara Vanishes With N1.7m Lagos Man Paid for Canadian Work Permit 3 Years Ago
“It is disheartening when people cash in on the freedom of speech and expression to write and unleash malice and such heinous, libellous, and defamatory publication against an innocent person and corporate organisation.”
POLICE INVITATION
On January 28, an Abuja-based police officer sent an invitation letter from the office of the Deputy Inspector General of Police dated January 24, giving Adewole only two days to prepare.
The invitation letter from the police
“I told the police I was in Lagos, not gainfully employed and without the means to travel to Abuja. So, I would need more time. But they didn’t respond. So, I later informed a lawyer who wrote to them, requesting the matter be transferred to Lagos because I did not have the means to see them,” Adewole told FIJ.
“After the letter, I didn’t hear from them until Thursday when they called. They said I ignored their invitation and that if I didn’t report by this weekend, they might pick me up themselves any time from Monday. I have not been fine since their call, and I suffer from hypertension.”
FIJ called Muyiwa Adejobi, the Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), for comments on the matter but he did not answer. A text sent to him at press time went unanswered.
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