Barely a week after Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Afe Babalola, withdrew his cases against lawyer and activist Dele Farotimi, concerns persist over the status of other pending lawsuits against him.
Despite Babalola’s withdrawal, Farotimi still faces multiple legal challenges, including a 12-count charge of cybercrime and 16 counts of criminal defamation. Other lawyers have also filed lawsuits claiming damages exceeding N1 billion.
On 6 December 2024, SAN Kehinde Ogunwumiju sued Farotimi for alleged defamation in his book, Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System. Ogunwumiju demanded N500 million in damages and sought a court injunction to halt the book’s publication and sale. He also requested the seizure of all copies and a public apology in two national newspapers.
Less than a week later, on 11 December 2024, another lawyer from Afe Babalola & Co, Ola Faro, filed a separate lawsuit in the Rivers State High Court. Faro claimed that statements in Farotimi’s book falsely accused him and the law firm of compromising the Supreme Court’s integrity. Seeking N500 million in damages for defamation and an additional N100 million for book distribution, Faro insisted the claims were baseless and damaging to his reputation.
Police Withdraw Cybercrime Charges, But Defamation Case Ongoing
Following the intervention of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, and other traditional rulers, police prosecutor Samson Osobu applied last Wednesday for the withdrawal of cybercrime charges at the Federal High Court in Ado-Ekiti.
However, a separate defamation case against Farotimi, scheduled for 13 February before a Chief Magistrate’s Court in Ado-Ekiti, remains active.
Farotimi’s Arrest and Ongoing Investigations
Reports from 3 December 2024 confirmed that Farotimi was arrested in Lagos. The Police Public Relations Officer for Ekiti State, DSP Abutu Sunday, stated that the arrest followed a petition alleging defamation and cyberbullying.
“The command wishes to inform the public that Dele Farotimi is currently under investigation following a petition against him. He was arrested in Lagos with a warrant after previous attempts to bring him in for interrogation failed,” DSP Sunday confirmed.