Biafra: 4 IPOB Members Detained Since 2015 Allowed To Go Back Home

Detained IPOB Members Regain Freedom

The four top members of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, who were arrested alongside their leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and detained at Kuje prison, Abuja since 2015 have been released and have returned to their various homes in the south-east.

The members, Chidiebere Onwudiwe, Bright Chimezie, David Nwawusi, and Benjamin Madubugwu, who were charged with offenses relating to “preparations to secede from Nigeria” and detained without bond since 2015.

They were last week granted bail but due to the stringent conditions which weren’t finalized till yesterday, they weren’t allowed to go till around 6pm yesterday in company of Mr. Aloy Ejimakor who led a team of IPOB lawyers to the prison facility to ensure that the release order was carried through.

The other lawyers on the team were Mr. P. A Ejiofor, Max Opara, Prince Mandela and Chukwudi Igwe.

The release followed meeting all the bail terms by the lawyers, especially the cash bond of Five Million Naira each, making it a total of Twenty Million for all the four accused persons.

The cash bond was paid yesterday by bank draft to the Registrar of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

It was upon meeting this final but difficult term that the release order was finally signed by Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako.

The lead counsel, Ejiofor said the next hearing date for their trial was set for 14th November 2018, adding that he expects the Judge will first deal with the pending objections to her jurisdiction before taking any further step in the trial.

The four defendants left Abuja Thursday night to their various homes in South east.