Nigerian Court Remands Journalist Stanley Ugagbe in Prison for Two Months Over Corruption Report

An Abuja court on July 14 charged Secret Reporters journalist Stanley Ugagbe on six counts and remanded him to Kuje Custodial Centre for two months of pretrial detention, AllAfrica reported. Ugagbe was seized from a taxi in Abuja on July 1 and held without charge at the National Cybercrime Centre until his release on July 6.

He returned to the center on July 13 to retrieve his phone and laptop, where police said they had orders to detain him again before releasing him into the custody of his lawyer Adekunle Olanipekun with instructions to appear in court the next day.

The charges stem from a June Secret Reporters investigation into a Central Bank of Nigeria executive's alleged corruption and infidelity. The July 14 charge sheet listed Tega Oghenedoro, also known as Fejiro Oliver and described as a suspect now at large, as a co-defendant.

The six counts include aiding cyberstalking under Section 27(1)(b) of Nigeria's cybercrimes law, false publication, bullying or harassing, harming reputation, defamation under the Penal Code, and false publication intended to harm reputation.

Ugagbe pleaded not guilty and applied for bail. The judge adjourned the application until September 21 after the prosecutor requested time to respond. With courts scheduled to begin a one-month recess on July 27, Ugagbe was sent to Kuje Custodial Centre about 40 kilometers southwest of Abuja.

His lawyer said he feared Ugagbe would miss his mother's funeral on July 30 and planned a fresh bail application. CPJ Africa Director Angela Quintal said Nigerian authorities had already subjected Stanley Ugagbe to secret detention and were now seeking to keep him behind bars for reporting on allegations of official corruption.