A magistrates’ court sitting in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, has granted N30 million bail to embattled lawyer and human rights activist Dele Farotimi.
At the hearing of the bail application on Friday, Magistrate Abayomi Adeosun ruled in favour of Farotimi’s bail request.
The magistrate stipulated that ‘The bail conditions included two responsible sureties and required Farotimi to surrender his international passport to the court.”
Additionally, he was instructed not to grant media interviews while the case was ongoing.
Before the bail ruling, Adeosun ruled that Farotimi’s lead counsel, Olumide Fusika, SAN, is prohibited from appearing before the court.
The magistrate cited section 9 of the Magistrate’s Courts Law 2014 to back his decision.
The activist has pleaded not guilty to the defamation charge.
TheNigerian Online reports that the Ekiti Police Command had arraigned Farotimi following a petition from an elder statesman and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Afe Babalola, who accused the activist of criminally defaming him in his recently released book.
Farotimi is currently facing trial in two courts on charges bordering on the alleged defamation of Babalola.
On December 9, the Federal High Court in Ekiti granted Farotimi N50 million bail with one surety, following a 12-count charge bordering on cybercrime filed by the inspector-general of police.
He, however, failed to meet the bail conditions.
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