NIGERIAN crossdresser, Okuneye Idris, also known as Bobrisky, has raised an alarm, alleging that operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) forced him off a KLM Airline flight bound for Amsterdam.
He was ejected at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and detained by immigration officers on the night of Thursday, October 31, while attempting to leave the country for London, the United Kingdom.
This incident came over a week after he was intercepted at the Sème border while allegedly attempting to flee the country on 22 October.
In a series of posts on his Instagram page, Bobrisky alleged that EFCC was behind his arrest and detention, adding that he sustained a serious injury during the process.
He wrote, “Nigerians help me, EFCC just arrested me.”
He added in another post, “I’m badly injured.”
His arrest came shortly after a picture of him and a social commentator Isaac Fayose, on Thursday, surfaced online.
Fayose had shared the picture of himself with Bobrisky as they boarded the same flight to London on his Instagram handle.
“Look who’s on the same flight with me to London, @Bobrisky222,” Fayose wrote.
Shortly after, in a viral video seen by The ICIR, Bobrisky was later removed from the flight by security operatives.
Meanwhile, the EFCC has yet to officially comment on this development, even as The ICIR reached out to the commission’s head of media and publicity, Dele Oyewale.
But a report from Punch quoted Oyewale to have confirmed Bobrisky’s arrest. “Bobrisky is on his way to Abuja as we speak,” Oyewale was quoted saying.
Earlier on Thursday, the director of public affairs, EFCC Wilson Uwajaren, according to Channels Television, disclosed the cross-dresser could face a fresh charge from the commission if the allegations against the EFCC prove to be false.
Recall, that allegations surfaced online from social media influencer Martins Otse, known as VeryDarkMan, claiming that while serving his sentence for abusing the naira, Bobrisky bribed prison officials and others to allow him to remain outside the prison.
He was said to have bribed senior prison officers to give him undeserved privileges as a convict.
The allegations prompted the minister of interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, to set up an investigative panel chaired by the ministry’s permanent secretary, Magdalena Ajani.
The panel stated that Bobrisky had access to special privileges during his incarceration, including a private cell, frequent visits, and access to electronic devices.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M