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August 29, 2024
Helen's home at Serenity Estate, Karshi, in Nasarawa State, was raided and she was arrested over the recent #EndBadGovernance protests.
The Stars of Nations Schools Principal, Helen Batubo, who honoured police invitation on Thursday has been released after being detained for hours.
This comes days after her home was raided in the night by Nigerian police personnel.
SaharaReporters reported on August 21 that Helen's home at Serenity Estate, Karshi, in Nasarawa State, was raided over the recent #EndBadGovernance protests.
"Helen, one of the people invited over the #EndBadGovernance protests has been freed. She honoured police invitation today (Thursday) and was released today. She was not arrested; she honoured the invitation and was held for hours. We are still working on the release of other comrades," a source revealed to SaharaReporters on Thursday.
"The rest of the detainees at IRT are to be charged to court tomorrow (Friday)," the source added.
SaharaReporters on Tuesday broke the story that the IRT on Monday evening arrested Adeyemi Abayomi Abiodun, an employee of Mr Drew Povey who runs Iva Valley Bookshop at the Labour House (NLC Headquarters) in Abuja.
SaharaReporters had learnt that the police team picked up Abiodun at around 6 pm on Monday.
Last Wednesday, August 21, 2024, SaharaReporters reported that the police had raided the home of Drew Povey in connection with the #EndBadGovernance protests and alleged terrorism financing.
Earlier that Wednesday, SaharaReporters reported a similar raid on Helen's home.
Helen Batubo is related to Mr Povey.
SaharaReporters reported last Tuesday that the school administrator had been invited by the IRT over allegations of “criminal conspiracy, terrorism financing, treasonable felony, subversion, and cybercrime.”
On Sunday, it was reported that Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja had secretly granted the police a 60-day extension to detain 124 alleged protesters, including at least 22 minors.
Justice Nwite had discreetly approved the Nigeria Police Force's request to detain minors aged 14-17 and others for 60 days over their alleged participation in the recent protests.
The judge's decision was made in response to separate ex-parte motions filed by police counsel Ibrahim Mohammed, permitting the continued detention of the minors arrested during the protests, pending the completion of investigations.
Meanwhile, human rights activists and #EndBadGovernance protesters, Michael Adaramoye, popularly known as Michael Lenin and Mosiu Sodiq, have been held in detention for over three weeks by President Bola Tinubu's administration.
There are reports that they need urgent medical attention.
According to a human rights activist, Francis Nwapa, the activists who were arrested by Nigerian security agents on August 5 during the nationwide 10-day hunger protests have been subjected to torture and kept in deplorable condition.
In a post on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Monday, Nwapa wrote, “21 Days in detention without trial.
“Tortured, handcuffed for days & kept in deplorable condition. Michael Adaramoye Lenin, Sodiq Mosiu are sick and require urgent medical care.
“@NuhuRibadu & @officialABAT have unleashed terror on citizens for joining #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria.”