A Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to Martins ‘VeryDarkMan’ Otse, a controversial social media critic who was remanded in police custody on charges of cyberbullying.
The well-known social media figure was released from police detention on Monday after meeting the conditions of his bail. Specific details about the bail requirements have not been disclosed.
Otse faced five charges of cyberstalking at the Federal High Court in Abuja on May 22. According to the Nigerian police, the charges stemmed from videos he allegedly uploaded to his Instagram account that were deemed “grossly offensive, pornographic, or of an indecent, obscene, or menacing character.”
The defendant was accused of making improper allegations against Iyabo Ojo regarding her daughter and attributing a gossip blog to Tonto Dikeh. Otse pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Despite the prosecution’s request for him to be remanded in prison, Otse’s lawyers successfully argued for him to remain in police custody, where he was held at the National Cybercrime Centre.
Earlier, Otse had been arrested at the behest of Dikeh, Ojo, and singer Samklef for alleged cyberbullying and cyberstalking. Otse was previously released from police custody in January.
