A LAGOS High Court, sitting in Ikeja, has adjourned a defamation suit brought against social media influencer Vincent Otse, also known as Very Dark Man by Femi Falana, a senior advocate, and his son, Folarin, popularly known as Falz.
The case could not continue because most of the applications filed by the parties are not yet in the court file, and the court has had to adjourn the hearing to January 23, 2025.
On October 14, the judge, Matthias Dawodu, while ruling on the Falanas’ exparte application, held that they possess legal rights safeguarding them against slander.
The court directed VDM to remove the allegedly defamatory video posted on September 24 against the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and his son.
Additionally, VDM was restrained from further releasing, publishing, or circulating defamatory content on his social media handles and pages pending the hearing of the suit.
The judge ordered that all processes in the matter be served on VDM through his lawyer, Deji Adeyanju.
The Falanas had initiated separate suits, claiming N500 million each in damages over VDM’s video, alleging they accepted N10 million from Idris Okuneye (Bobrisky) to compromise justice.
They asserted VDM knowingly published unverified claims, recklessly injuring their reputation.
They alleged that the defamatory publication remains online, perpetuating harm to their reputation.
The senior advocate then proceeded to sue VeryDarkMan via an ex-parte originating application on October 9, 2024.
In response, VDM applied for leave to appeal the ruling, citing significant legal questions and potential miscarriage of justice.
He told the court that refusing to give him leave could lead to the implementation of a ruling that does not accurately apply the law, which could have negative effects on the parties concerned as well as the administration of justice generally.
However, many Nigerian media platforms erroneously reported that the Lagos State High Court imposed a fine of N500 million on him over defamatory posts and videos about Falana and his son Falz.
The claim, earlier reported but now deleted or removed by many media platforms, still exists on other platforms such as News Central and various social media posts, as seen here and here.
However, a review of the certified copy of the court ruling did not reveal anywhere that the court ordered the social media influencer to pay a sum of N500 million as a fine.
Very Darkman is not new to controversy, in a different matter. The ICIR reported that VeryDarkMan was granted bail in the sum of N2 million over the allegation that he wore a police uniform without permission and falsely presented himself as an officer of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
He was arraigned on Friday, November 1 by the NPF before an Abuja Chief Magistrate Court sitting at Wuse, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in the charge marked: CR/510/2024.
The court then gave him N2 million in bail, with the two sureties in the like sum.
The court ruled that the sureties had to register their passports with the FCT, Abuja, in addition to being residents of the FCT.
According to the court, the sureties must also provide a means of identification and depose an affidavit to provide the defendant for his trial whenever required.
The court mandated the police investigating the case to confirm the sureties’ addresses, and they were also instructed to present proof that their utility bills had been paid.
Additionally, the defendant was instructed to sign an affidavit stating that he would always be available for the trial.
VeryDarkMan was spotted wearing a uniform resembling that of the NPF in a video that went viral on social media.
He humorously asked his admirers and followers to always refer to him with his new rank rather than calling him an activist, describing himself as an officer of an online division.
However, the defendant eventually apologised publicly for his actions after an earlier encounter with the police that involved a summon.
A reporter with the ICIR
A Journalist with a niche for quality and a promoter of good governance