The Federal Government has charged the convener of #RevolutionNow protest, Omoyele Sowore, with treasonable felony and money laundering.
Sowore, who has been in detention since August 3, was charged along with Olawale Bakare, also known as Mandate, in a seven-count charge filed by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation on Friday.
The Sahara Reporters publisher and presidential candidate of African Action Congress, AAC, in the last general elections, is being held by the Department of State Services, DSS, on the orders of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The order obtained on August 8, 2019, granted the DSS permission to detain Sowore for 45 days in the first instance, following its claim that he was involved in acts of terrorism.
He was also accused of plotting a violent revolution against the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The 45 days expired today, September 21.
The charges against Sowore and Bakare were signed by Aminu Alilu, a Chief State Counsel in the Department of Public Prosecutions of the Federal Ministry of Justice on behalf of the AGF and Minister of Justice, Abubakar is the Malami, SAN.
The defendants are accused of conspiracy to commit treasonable felony in breach of section 516 of the Criminal Code Act by allegedly staging a revolution campaign on September 5, 2019 aimed at removing the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The government alleged that the defendants committed the actual offence of treasonable felony in breach of Section, 4(1)© of the Criminal Code Act, by using the platform of Coalition for Revolution, in August 2019 in Abuja, Lagos and other parts of Nigeria, to stage the #RevolutionNow protest allegedly aimed at removing the President.
The charge further accused Sowore of involvement in cybercrime offences in violation of section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention) Act, by “knowingly” sending “messages by means of press interview granted on Arise Television network, “which you knew to be false, for the purpose of causing insult, enmity, hatred and ill-will on the person of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
The state also accused Sowore of money laundering offences in breach of section 15(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 by allegedly transferring by means of swift wire various sums of money from his United Bank of Africa Plc account with number 3002246104 into Sahara Reporters Media Foundation’s account with Guaranty Trust Bank in order to conceal the origin of the funds.
He was alleged to have transferred $19,975 on April 2, 2019; $20,475 on May 21, 2019, $16,975 on June 27, 2019, and another $16,975 on July 16, 2019.
The charge listed exhibits to be relied upon as well as specific witnesses to be called in persecuting the case.
The DSS arrested Sowore in Lagos on August 2, 2019, following his call for revolution in a protest he organised to take place in some major cities on August 5, 2019.
