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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Crime & Justice

Voter data leak: Police detain INEC official, quiz Wike’s aide

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Unnamed sources Under investigation
  • Police have detained an Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) official and questioned a media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory over the alleged unauthorized release of a voter's registration record.
  • The investigation, triggered by a petition alleging cyber-related offenses, focuses on the disclosure of personal information linked to actor Emeka Ike during a political controversy.
  • Sources indicate the detained official, an electoral officer, is being investigated for allegedly disclosing confidential voter records in connection with a party primary election dispute.

Detectives are investigating the alleged unauthorized release of voter registration data, leading to the detention of an Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) official and the questioning of Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant on Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.

We have had the Electoral Officer for the Abuja Municipal Area Council in our custody since yesterday. Also, Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Assistant on Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, was invited and questioned over the Emeka Ike matter. A top security aide to the INEC chairman petitioned the police over allegations of criminal conspiracy, cyber intimidation, the leaking of classified documents, and conduct likely to breach public peace, all of which are connected to the Emeka Ike case.

— Police sourceDescribing the ongoing investigation and the individuals involved.

The investigation stems from a petition detailing cyber-related offenses and the unauthorized disclosure of confidential documents containing actor Emeka Ike's personal information. Police sources revealed the detained official, an electoral officer for the Abuja Municipal Area Council, is under scrutiny for allegedly leaking voter registration records amid a political controversy during a party primary election.

"We have had the Electoral Officer for the Abuja Municipal Area Council in our custody since yesterday," a police source stated. "Also, Lere Olayinka... was invited and questioned over the Emeka Ike matter. A top security aide to the INEC chairman petitioned the police over allegations of criminal conspiracy, cyber intimidation, the leaking of classified documents, and conduct likely to breach public peace, all of which are connected to the Emeka Ike case."

The leak occurred on May 29, 2026, when a group of political actors spearheading a protest under a political party banner blocked the exit gate of the INEC AMAC office with vehicles, behaving aggressively and alleging irregularities in an ongoing primary election.

— Security sourceExplaining the circumstances that led to the alleged data leak.

The incident reportedly began on May 29, 2026, when protesters gathered at the INEC office in AMAC, alleging irregularities in an ongoing primary election. Following this, the AMAC electoral officer allegedly accessed Emeka Ike's details and instructed a subordinate to screenshot the information. The leak occurred after political actors, including Emeka Ike, blocked the office's exit gate. The electoral officer allegedly shared the information with Olayinka after they connected on Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp.

Following the hostility, the AMAC Electoral Officer discovered through administrative channels that one of the primary actors leading the aggressive protest, identified as Emeka Ike, a popular Nollywood actor, had only recently initiated a voters’ registration transfer from Imo State, an application that had not even been officially approved by the commission.

— Security sourceDetailing how the electoral officer accessed Emeka Ike's information.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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