Police arrest, release Rochas Okorocha after interrogation

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The Nigeria Police Force has arrested a former governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha.

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Mr Okorocha, a former Imo West senator, was arrested on Monday night at REIZ Continental Hotel in central Abuja.

Aniete Iniedu, the force spokesperson, confirmed the development to Channels TV.

Mr Iniedu, a chief superintendent of police, told the TV station that the former governor was later released on bail after being interrogated for an hour.

The spokesperson confirmed that the politician’s arrest followed allegations of criminal conspiracy, forgery and impersonation against him.

He pointed out that Mr Okorocha was asked to return to the Force Headquarters on Tuesday (Today) for further interrogation as investigations into the allegations continue.

The former governor, a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), failed to honour previous invitations extended to him by the police regarding the allegations which prompted his arrest.

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The politician was reportedly invited to the Force Headquarters for the first time on 2 September but the appointment was rescheduled to 8 September at the request of his lawyers.

But he still reportedly failed to show up on the agreed date.

PREMIUM TIMES will publish follow-ups on this development.

Background

Mr Okorocha was an APC aspirant for Imo West District.

The APC’s primary for the district was organised by the party on 18 May.

Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State won the primary and was later recognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

However, there was controversy when a different document emerged which showed that Mr Okorocha had won the same APC primary.

The disputed document listed Mr Okorocha as the successful candidate with 150,780 votes despite initial results showing Mr Uzodimma scored 230,464 votes while Mr Okorocha received 1,098 votes.

In October this year, INEC’s Imo State Office petitioned the SSS and the Nigeria Police Force over the disputed document.

In letters dated 5 October and 8 October, Mr Ibeziako, a lawyer, described the document naming Mr Okorocha as the winner as “fictitious.”

The INEC maintained that the authentic report of the 18 May primary identified Mr Uzodimma as the winner and that the APC had forwarded his name to the electoral body as its candidate.

The commission then attached copies of both the official report and the disputed document to its petitions and asked the security agencies to investigate the document’s source and authenticity.

Meanwhile, in August, Mr Okorocha filed a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja against INEC, Mr Uzodimma and the APC.

The politician asked the court to determine whether INEC was bound by reports from its officials who monitored the 18 May senatorial primary and whether the commission was right to recognise Mr Uzodimma as the winner.

The former governor also raised a constitutional question concerning Mr Uzodimma’s eligibility to contest the 2027 senatorial election while still serving as governor.

Mr Uzodimma’s second term in office will elapse by January 2028 while the next Senate is expected to be inaugurated in June 2027.

Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution provides that a state governor cannot hold another executive office or paid employment while holding office.

However, PREMIUM TIMES understands that Mr Uzodimma has perfected plans to resign his position as governor before the expiration of his tenure to switch to the Senate if he wins in the general election.

A report recently surfaced online suggesting that a “senior magistrate court” in Abuja issued a bench warrant of arrest against Mr Okorocha and a former Senator, Ifeanyi Araraume, as well as two others on 9 September.

But Mr Okorocha refuted the report and challenged those circulating it to make the warrant public.