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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Crime & Justice

DSS Tells Lawyers to Seek Suspension of Sowore Cybercrime Trial Until After 2027 Election

From ThisDay · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Unnamed sources In the courts
  • Nigeria’s DSS has directed its legal team to seek a suspension of Omoyele Sowore’s cybercrime proceedings until after the 2027 presidential election.
  • The proposed adjournment would allow Sowore to participate in the election campaign, according to a source close to the DSS legal team.
  • The case concerns social media posts in which Sowore allegedly called President Bola Tinubu a “criminal,” and remains pending before the Federal High Court.

Nigeria’s Department of State Services has instructed its lawyers to seek a long adjournment in the cybercrime case against human rights activist and African Action Congress presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore, potentially carrying the proceedings beyond the 2027 presidential election.

A source close to the DSS legal team said Director-General Oluwatosin Ajayi discussed putting the case on hold with senior legal officials and counsel Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, on Aug. 20, 2026. The source said the move would allow Sowore to take part in the campaign without the court case becoming a hindrance.

The DSS boss told the Senior Advocate and his directorate of legal services that, with the commencement of presidential campaigns, it would only be fair to pause the court case in order to enable Sowore fully participate in the upcoming elections without let or hindrance.

— Source close to the DSS legal teamThe source described the stated rationale for seeking a suspension of the proceedings.

The case is scheduled for Sept. 20, 2026. The DSS lawyers are expected to formally address the Federal High Court from Sept. 14, when regular sittings resume after the annual judicial vacation. They are expected to request an adjournment until January or February 2027, after the election campaign and voting period.

The DSS boss told the lawyers that, since the matter had been in court for nearly a year, suspending it for another four months wouldn’t make much difference.

— Source close to the DSS legal teamThe source explained why DSS leaders believed a further delay would not prejudice the case.

The proceedings stem from posts Sowore made on X and Facebook on Aug. 25, 2025. In one post, he referred to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a “criminal” and accused him of lying about corruption in Nigeria.

The DSS is asking the court to determine whether a person may describe the president or another individual as a criminal without a prior judicial finding. The agency has argued that the case seeks a legal interpretation of that issue. The source said DSS leadership believed another four-month delay would not prejudice a case that had already been before the court for nearly a year.

This criminal @officialABAT actually went to Brazil to state that there is no more corruption under his regime in Nigeria. What audacity to lie shamelessly.

— Omoyele SoworeThe social media post at the center of the DSS case referred to President Bola Tinubu.
About this summary

Originally published by ThisDay in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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