THE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has explained why its operatives arrested a journalist and publisher of Cross River Watch, Agba Jalingo, in Lagos.
Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Command Josephine Adeh disclosed reasons for the arrest in a statement released on Saturday.
“On Saturday, August 20th 2022, Agba Jalingo was arrested by State CID operatives in response to a petition filed against him by one Elizabeth Frank Ayade.
“He was arrested over a false allegation, claiming that she paid one Mr. Pascal to write an examination for her at the law school,” the statement said.
According to the statement, Jalingo did not honour an invitation by the police concerning the petition.
“Upon the receipt of this petition, we went ahead to invite Mr. Agba Jalingo, but he refused to come, leaving the police no option but to secure an arrest warrant, which is why he was arrested in Lagos.
“The investigation is currently ongoing and the unravelled facts will be communicated subsequently,” the statement added.
Jalingo was arrested in Lagos on August 19 by security operatives who laid siege to his residence for hours.
According to Facebook posts by Jalingo on Friday, his wife and daughter were held hostage by the policemen who came into Lagos from Abuja to secure his arrest.
“I don’t know who sent the police, but they have held my wife and daughter hostage downstairs. I don’t feel safe,” he noted in one of the posts.
Cross River Watch also reported that hours after the siege on Jalingo’s residence, a staff of the media house was chased into the office premises by a grey Toyota Corolla with tinted glasses.
Ijeoma Opara is a journalist with The ICIR. Reach her via [email protected] or @ije_le on Twitter.