EFCC labels activist VeryDarkMan as a bandit – Lawyer Deji Adeyanju

Deji Adeyanju, the lawyer representing popular online personality Martins Vincent Otse, also known as VeryDarkMan, has alleged that EFCC officers labeled his client a “bandit,” blindfolded him, and physically assaulted him during a controversial arrest. The revelation was made in an official statement shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Adeyanju’s law firm, outlining the circumstances […]

General May 3, 2025 0 3 Add to Reading List

EFCC labels activist VeryDarkMan as a bandit – Lawyer Deji Adeyanju

Deji Adeyanju, the lawyer representing popular online personality Martins Vincent Otse, also known as VeryDarkMan, has alleged that EFCC officers labeled his client a “bandit,” blindfolded him, and physically assaulted him during a controversial arrest.

The revelation was made in an official statement shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Adeyanju’s law firm, outlining the circumstances surrounding the arrest and the alleged abuse.

According to the statement titled “Preliminary Statement on the Arrest of Mr. Martins Vincent Otse (aka Very Dark Black Man) and Mr. Steven Avuara (aka C-Pack) by Officers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission“, the incident occurred on May 2, 2025, shortly after Mr. Otse, his mother Mrs. Blessing Otse, and Mr. Avuara visited Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank), Garki, Area 3, Abuja, to inquire about “the incessant deductions from Mrs. Otse’s bank account.”

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After concluding their inquiry, the trio attempted to leave the bank but were reportedly “trapped in the bank’s security door for over five minutes.”

Moments after exiting, they were allegedly “accosted at gunpoint just a few metres from the bank’s premises, assaulted, and blindfolded by armed men dressed in black uniforms.”

The statement alleged that during the arrest, “the officers labelled them as ‘bandits’ and threatened to shoot them in the presence of Mrs. Otse.”

Upon learning of the incident, Adeyanju’s colleagues, Marvin Omorogbe and Steven Eze, visited the EFCC headquarters where they confirmed that both Otse and Avuara were being detained by “officers attached to the Commission’s Special Duty Committee (SDC) Unit 4.”

While they were denied access to VeryDarkMan — who “declined to see anybody” — they were able to speak with Avuara, who provided an account of the events.

Efforts to determine the basis for Avuara’s detention were unsuccessful.

The EFCC officers reportedly refused to disclose the allegations against him.

Instead, they presented an arrest warrant against Otse allegedly issued by “His Worship, Njideka Iloanya-Duru (Mrs), Chief Magistrate II, Wuse Zone 2, on the allegation of cyber stalking.”

Despite “repeated requests,” the statement says, the officers attempted to interrogate Avuara without clarifying any charges against him. The lawyers eventually exited the interrogation room, refusing to be part of a process that they considered a violation of Avuara’s “constitutional right to be informed of the allegations against him.”

The statement concluded: “While we continue to interface with the EFCC on this issue, we call on the Commission to respect our clients’ constitutionally guaranteed rights.”

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