A civil society group, the Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA), has raised concerns over the alleged illegal prosecution of Alhaji Yusuf Adepoju, leader of the Academy of Islamic Propagation (ACADIP), and six others for cybercrime.
In a letter dated August 6, 2024, addressed to the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, HURMA questioned the legal basis for the prosecution, claiming the police did not conduct an investigation.
The letter, signed by human rights lawyer Lekan Alabi, highlighted that the defendants, including Yusuf Adepoju, Mubarak Adepoju, Tunde Badmus (aka Uptown), Adelakun Gideon, and Abdul Rasaq Akinola, were charged without being shown any petition or invited to respond to the allegations against them.
The group called the prosecution unjust, attributing it to remnants of the previous administration and urged the AGF to investigate the officials’ role in the case.
HURMA further called for a probe into the Assistant Chief State Counsel, T.A. Mukuolu, and questioned how Oladayo Ogungbe obtained a fiat to prosecute without a police investigation. The group urged the AGF to address the issue promptly to prevent further abuse of power.
