Scores of youths have stormed a GT Bank branch in Abuja in protest of the arrest of a popular rights activist and social media influencer, Martins Vincent Otse, also known as Verydarkman (VDM), by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The protesters, who were also sighted in the Wuse area, just right after the Berger bridge with various placards including “Free VDM”, described VDM’s arrest and detention as illegal.
They also vowed to take their grievance to the Nigerian Human Rights Commission, in the Maitama district of the nation’s capital.
Observation no be cr¡m£ : Unbelievable large numbers of Abuje citizens came out to protest for the release of Verydarkman at the front of GTBANK branch at Area3 Abuja ,where VDM was arrested pic.twitter.com/07e0x4GrND
On Friday, reports surfaced online that VeryDarkMan (VDM), had gone missing. Some sources claimed the EFCC arrested him inside a GTBank branch.
VDM was reportedly arrested after visiting the bank with his mother to address “unauthorised withdrawals from her account”.
His supporters immediately launched online protests, with some threatening to take action against the bank.
As of press time, GTBank has not issued any official statement regarding the incident.
In a video obtained on the activist’s page, some of VDM’s mentees and supporters visited the EFCC office over the weekend to deliver food to him. However, they were turned away by security officers, who stated that no one was permitted to see him or bring him food, assuring them that the agency would provide his meals.
EFCC confirms arrest of VDM
The EFCC has on Monday morning confirmed the arrest of VDM.
The commission’s spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said that the activist was arrested based on petitions from some complainants who had grievances against VDM.
“We arrested him to respond to a series of allegations raised against him by some petitioners,” Oyewale stated.
When asked if the petition was related to GT Bank, he said the petitions came from different individuals and that the EFCC has a duty to protect the petitioners.
He added, “We will release him once he meets the bail conditions, and we will take the case to court as soon as possible. We are law-abiding.”
He confirmed that the activist was arrested in Abuja.
Meanwhile, earlier, Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the last election, Peter Obi, and popular singer David Adeleke, also known as Davido, have both spoken out on the VDM issue.
While Davido is calling for his release, Obi condemned the way the activist was arrested, saying it looked more like a kidnapping.
Activist Omoyele Sowore claimed that the EFCC arrested VDM to silence him because he is one of the outspoken voices in the country who regularly speaks out against corruption.
