Court Orders Sowore’s Arrest Over Failure to Attend Cybercrime Trial

By Margaret Abah

The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the arrest of activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, after he failed to appear for the continuation of his trial over alleged cybercrime offences.

Sowore was expected to open his defence to a two-count charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) over a social media post in which he described President Bola Tinubu as a "criminal."

The activist, who opted to represent himself after his legal team withdrew from the case, was absent when the matter came up for hearing on Tuesday. He, however, sent a letter to the court, explaining that he had travelled to Lagos in search of lawyers to take over his defence.

Following an application by the DSS, Justice Mohammed Umar revoked the bail earlier granted to Sowore and issued a warrant for his arrest.

Before the latest development, Sowore had asked Justice Umar to withdraw from the case and transfer the matter to the Chief Judge for reassignment, alleging bias.

Relying on Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution, he accused the judge of high-handedness and cited an incident in which one of his lawyers was allegedly ordered to kneel before the court.

According to him, members of his legal team became reluctant to continue with the case because of what they considered humiliating treatment and the court's decision to conduct proceedings on a day-to-day basis.

Sowore was arraigned on December 2, 2025, and pleaded not guilty to the charges, which were brought under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024.

The charges stem from posts he made on August 25, 2025, in response to President Tinubu's remarks in Brazil that his administration had ended corruption in Nigeria.

The DSS subsequently requested X, formerly Twitter, and Meta Platforms to remove the posts and suspend Sowore's accounts. The agency also directed him to delete the posts across all platforms.

According to the prosecution, his refusal to comply led to the charges, with the DSS alleging that the posts were capable of causing a breakdown of law and order and damaging the reputation of the President.

Printouts of the social media posts and correspondence from the DSS are among exhibits listed in the case.

X and Meta were initially named as co-defendants but were later removed from the amended charge.