Justice Rita Offili Ajumogobia has ordered that a legal practitioner, Ahmed Abdulrahman and four others be remanded at the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Area 10 Abuja till November 10 following their arraignment on cyber bullying a serving Senator, Senator Shehu Baba Umar.

The lawyer was on Thursday, put on trial by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) along with four others namely, Daure David, Ishaq Abubakar Muhammed, Abdulrashid Abdullahi Musa and Nasiru Usman Abubakar for allegedly blackmailing the Senate Committee Chairman on National Security and Intelligence. 

They were docked by the IGP on an eleven-count charge bordering on cyber bullying, advance fee fraud and extortion. However, when the charges were read before Justice Rita Offili Ajumogobia, the lawyer and the other four defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Upon the not guilty plea of the lawyer and his co defendants, Counsel to the prosecution, Victor Okoye asked for a date for trial and that the defendants be remanded at the Kuje prison, Abuja. Counsel to the lawyer, Affis Matanmi however moved a bail application on behalf of his client, whom he said, is a legal practitioner of the Supreme Court and will not interfere with police investigation and witnesses if admitted to bail.

He reminded the court that police, on their own, granted the first defendant administrative bail which he did not jump because, as a lawyer, he knows the consequences of jumping bail. However, the bail request was vehemently opposed by the counsel to prosecution, Victor Okoye, who informed the court that shortly after the lawyer was admitted to bail, he engaged in two other cyber bullying and that, he featured prominently in five of the eleven count charges.

After taking arguments for and against the bail application, Justice Ajumogobia ordered that, the defendants be remanded at the Force CID till November 10 for the lawyer to the first defendant to file further affidavit and reply on point of law to the weighty allegations contained in the counter affidavit of the prosecution. The Judge subsequently adjourned the matter till November 10.