Angry youths on Monday blocked operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) from whisking social media influencer, Justice Mark Chidiebere, widely known as Justice Crack, away from the Federal High Court premises in Abuja.
The incident caused a brief disruption within the court premises as SSS operatives attempted to escort the influencer out after proceedings.
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The youths formed a human blockade around the operatives and repeatedly chanted “Free Justice Crack,” demanding his immediate release and describing his detention as unjust.
During the protest, some influencers and advocates, including Omoyele Sowore and Peter Akah, were among the protesters.
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The confrontation temporarily disrupted movement within the court area before security operatives overpowered the protesters, taking the influencer away from the premises.
Apparently, he was first arrested by the Nigerian Army and then handed over to the SSS over a social media post he made about soldiers’ welfare.
On Saturday, the Nigerian Army confirmed arresting the blogger and social media influencer.
The Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Appolonia Anele, a colonel, aid he was arrested after preliminary investigations revealed he had conversations with soldiers that bordered on subversion.
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The Army said its attention was drawn to a social media post by Mr Chidiebere where he highlighted complaints made by some soldiers regarding their feeding and general welfare.
The statement said a deeper look at the matter revealed that the influencer’s engagement with the soldiers went beyond welfare concerns.
“Preliminary report reveals that the soldiers discussed a wide range of issues with Justice Chidiebere, who seemed to be inciting soldiers to create discontent within the system.
“An example was a chat bordering on subversion which Chidiebere had with the soldiers,” the statement said.
