KEY POINTS
- Bobrisky completed her six-month prison sentence.
- No proof she served time outside prison facilities.
- Correctional privileges granted to Bobrisky spark corruption concerns.
There is no proof that well-known crossdresser Idris Okuneye, better known by his stage name Bobrisky, completed any portion of a six-month imprisonment sentence outside of a correctional facility, according to an investigating team appointed by Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
Bobrisky was released in August after receiving a six-month prison sentence on April 12 for misusing the naira.
No evidence Bobrisky served jail term outside prison
In a voicemail purportedly from Bobrisky, controversial social critic Martins Otse, also known as VeryDarkMan, claimed to have given N15 million to representatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in order to have money laundering accusations against her dropped. Bobrisky also stated in the recording that a “godfather,” in conjunction with Nigerian Correctional Service employees, made arrangements for her to serve her term in a private flat rather than a jail.
The minister created a team to look into any corruption and infractions within the Nigerian Correctional Service in response to these claims. Magdalena Ajani, the Permanent Secretary of the Interior Ministry, served as the panel’s chair, acccording to Punch.
The first part of the study was given on Monday by Uju Agomoh, Executive Director of the Prisoners’ Rehabilitation and Welfare Action and a panellist. According to Agomoh, the panel did not discover any proof that Bobrisky was permitted to sleep outside the prison during her April 12–August 5, 2024, sentence.
The panel found no proof to date that Mr. Okuneye slept outside the custody centre during his six-month correctional sentence with the customary remission applicable, which ran from April 12, 2024, to August 5, 2024, according to Agomoh.
After finishing her term, Bobrisky was released from Kuje Custodial Centre and moved to the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kirikiri-Apapa, Lagos, and finally to the Maximum Security Custodial Centre, according to the report.
Bobrisky had a number of benefits while in detention, according to Agomoh, including furnished single cells, a humidifier, and regular visits from friends and relatives.
Privileges granted to Bobrisky raise questions about corruption
However, the panel determined that Sections 164A and 164B of the Nigerian Correctional Service Act of 2019 were broken by sending Bobrisky to a maximum-security facility as a first-time offender.
“A furnished single cell, access to a refrigerator and television, self-feeding, and possibly a phone were among the privileges that Mr. Okuneye enjoyed while in custody, according to the panel,” Agomoh stated.
In order to ascertain if these privileges were driven by financial gain and constituted corrupt acts by correctional staff, the panel suggested doing additional research. In order to prevent biased treatment of prisoners based on their socioeconomic situation, the panel also called for the creation of explicit standards for dealing with cases of this nature in the future.
