The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday revoked the bail earlier granted to activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, and issued a bench warrant for his arrest over his failure to appear in court in an alleged cybercrime and criminal defamation case instituted by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Justice Mohammed Garba Umar ordered that Sowore be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre upon arrest and produced before the court on June 22, 2026, when a ruling is expected on his application seeking the judge’s recusal from the case.
Sowore had been granted bail on self-recognition in December 2025. At the time, the judge declined an application by counsel to the DSS, Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, seeking the issuance of an arrest warrant after both Sowore and his lawyer failed to appear for trial.
However, when the matter came up again on Tuesday, neither the defendant nor his counsel was present in court. Counsel for the prosecution consequently applied for the revocation of the bail and the issuance of a bench warrant, describing the repeated absence as a deliberate attempt to delay proceedings.
The DSS had arraigned Sowore on a five-count charge bordering on alleged criminal defamation arising from social media posts in which he described President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a “criminal.” According to the prosecution, efforts to persuade the activist to remove the posts were unsuccessful, prompting the filing of charges.
Sowore had maintained that his comments were protected under his constitutional right to freedom of expression.
Last month, Justice Umar dismissed a no-case submission filed by the defence, holding that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against the defendant. Following the ruling, Sowore and his legal team accused the court of bias and subsequently applied for the judge to recuse himself from further handling of the matter.
