Judge warns Sowore he may lose freedom if alleged online harassment continues

A threat to revoke the bail granted to Omoyele Sowore, the publisher of Sahara Reporters, was issued by the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday, due to his absence in court for the ongoing trial regarding alleged defamatory remarks against President Bola Tinubu.

n

Justice Mohammed Umar, who made the threat, also stated that he would issue an arrest warrant for Sowore's forceful production if he fails to attend court on the next adjourned date.

n

The warning was given after an application by Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, the lawyer to the Department of State Services (DSS), who noted that Sowore did not attend court despite being served with a hearing notice through his team of lawyers.

n

Sowore, a politician, is being prosecuted by the DSS for allegedly making false claims against President Bola Tinubu by referring to him as “a criminal” in a post on his “X” and Facebook accounts, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

n

When the case was called on Thursday, neither Sowore nor any of his team of lawyers was present in court, prompting a reaction from Kehinde, who stated that the business of the day was for the defence to conclude its cross-examination of the first prosecution witness.

n

Kehinde confirmed that he had verified with the court's registry that a hearing notice was served on the defendant through his lawyers, and that the prosecution had also been served.

n

The senior lawyer pointed out that no reason was given by the defendant for his absence in court, and that none of his approximately 30 lawyers were present to provide an explanation.

n

Kehinde cited Section 352(1)&(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, and prayed the court to revoke the bail granted to the defendant and issue a bench warrant against him for his immediate production in court to face his trial.

n

Justice Umar confirmed that Sowore was duly served with a hearing notice through his lawyers and noted that the defendant had always attended court since the case began late last year.

n

The judge also noted that past adjournments in the case had been granted at the request of both the prosecution and the defence, and decided to give the defendant the benefit of the doubt since it was his first time being absent from his trial.

n

However, Justice Umar warned that if Sowore fails to attend court on the next date, he would not hesitate to grant the prosecution's request to revoke the defendant's bail and issue an arrest warrant against him.

n

The judge then adjourned the matter until March 16 for the continuation of the trial and ordered that a hearing notice be further issued to the defence.