The police had earlier traced the lawyer to his home and forcefully arrested him for defending the activist
Abubakar Marshal, a lawyer with Falana & Falana Chambers arrested for filing a lawsuit on behalf of human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore against businessman and former lawmaker, Ned Nwoko, and the Nigeria Police Force, has been moved to Keffi Prison in Nasarawa State.
The police had earlier traced the lawyer to his home and forcefully arrested him for defending the activist
The officers accused the lawyer of embarrassing the Nigerian Government, police authorities and Nwoko over his action.
In a statement on Saturday, Tope Temokun, an activiwt, revealed that the lawyer who had been in detention at the Kuje Prison was relocated to a new prison to deny him access to people.
Temokun also disclosed that Marshal had been denied food since Friday.
The lawyer also dismissed claims that Marshal was arrested because he stood as a surety for Sowore.
He added that the matter had nothing to do with Nwoko's reputation as claimed.
According to him, Marshal was arrested primarily because of Sowore's recent declaration to contest the 2023 presidential race.
The statement reads, "Information reaching us is that Marshal had been moved this afternoon from Kuje Prison to Keffi Prison. This must be to deny him access to people and necessaries.
"Marshal was not arrested because he stood surety for Omoyele Sowore, neither was he arrested because Sowore failed to report to the police.
"Marshal and Allen Sowore were the two lawyers who followed Sowore on February 24, 2022 to the police station upon his arrest. Sowore didn't write any statement as he insisted he did not commit any crime.
"When he was asked to go home that night, Sowore dropped his personal phone number with the commander of the unit for him to be contacted if they needed him.
"On Tuesday, March 1, 2022, Sowore appeared before the Federal High Court, Abuja (a public place) for his treasonable felony trial or re-arraignment. He moved from the court to the venue of his presidential declaration, Women Development Centre, another public place located at the heart of Abuja.
"Somebody who jumped bail was appearing in court and appearing for open presidential declaration and yet he was jumping bail. What a parody of narrative?
"The powers that be under Buhari government were irked that Sowore was able to do his presidential declaration as against all their scheming and grand-plan which was to remand Sowore before the planned declaration, till filing of nomination to INEC has closed.
"The arrangement was to have Sowore detained before March 1, 2022, so that when his case in charge number FHC/ABJ/CR/235/19 would be called in court on the 1st of March 2022, Sowore would be absent and they could apply to the court to revoke his bail and get bench warrant issued against him, preparatory for his renewed remand as 2023 politicking thickens.
"Ned Nwoko, whose complaint they are now hanging on to perpetrate this injustice, had written a pre-action notice dated December 20, 2021 to Sahara Reporters Media Foundation, demanding the retraction of the publications he alleged were libelous against him and therefore he knew the character of his case was not only civil but also against Sahara Reporters as a legal entity and not Sowore.
"So the whole case is not primarily about Ned and his reputation or about Marshal standing as surety or about Sowore not reporting to the police but all about Sowore, a man under city arrest, declaring his presidential ambition openly, despite all machinations put in place to stop this. On March 1, 2022, Marshal was the counsel who appeared from Falana chambers to represent Sowore in his treasonable felony rearraignment, while I joined him in court. Sowore and his lawyers are marked down for persecution. Simple.
"All of us connected to this cause are now on the watch-list. If phone number stops ringing, it is not kidnapping. It is arrest. The regime has lost it. The police cell and prison no meant for goat. Na for man! We are students of history. We know that time like this will come and go and does not usually last."