Ex-DSS Officer Remanded Over Alleged Link To IPOB

A retired officer of the Department of State Service (DSS), Nwaogu Ihechimere Ezeakolam, has been remanded in the Kuje Custodial Centre for allegedly associating himself with the proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB).

Ezeakolam, who was arraigned by the secret police, was on Thursday, August 6, put on trial at the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on a four-count charge before Justice Mohammed Garba Umar.

Daily Trust reports that the federal government had taken over the trial after which the charges were filed against him by the Director of the Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Rotimi Oyedepo.

The former officer, among others, was accused of rendering support and material assistance to IPOB, contrary to and punishable under the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act, 2022.

The DSS claimed that he joined IPOB despite knowing fully well that it is a proscribed organisation.

Similarly, Ezeakolam was accused of posting on social media platforms messages calculated to induce unsuspecting members of the public to support IPOB.

Also, the retired DSS officer was charged with posting messages on social media platforms aimed at advancing the cause of IPOB.

However, when the charges were read to him, the accused officer pleaded not guilty.

DSS lawyer, Memunat Oladunjoye, asked for a date for the commencement of the trial.

However, counsel to the defendant, Godfirst Maduka, applied for a date to file a bail application, which Justice Mohammed Garba Umar said should be filed at any time.

Justice Umar fixed October 29 for the opening of the trial and ordered that the accused person be remanded at Kuje prison pending his bail application.(Daily trust)