Benin: DSS Arrests Suspect in Attack on Obi, Others

• Court grants accelerated hearing in UN building bombing trial

Chuks Okocha and Linus Aleke in Abuja

Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested a suspect in connection with the recent attack on the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, and other political figures in Benin City, Edo State.

Gunmen had opened fire on a political meeting February 24 in Benin City, where Obi and several others narrowly escaped.

Following the incident, a social media user identified as Udeme Monday Stephen allegedly claimed responsibility for the attack in posts on X and threatened further violence.

Security sources disclosed that the DSS immediately commenced covert investigations, deploying forensic tools to trace the origin of the online threats.

The suspect, said to be 26 years old and a school teacher in Rivers State, was subsequently arrested and was currently in custody.

He was expected to be charged in court upon the conclusion of investigation.

A senior security official stated that DSS acted on credible intelligence and reaffirmed its mandate to investigate threats to national security, regardless of political, ethnic or religious considerations.

In a separate development, the Federal High Court in Abuja approved the DSS request for accelerated hearing in the long-running trial of five men charged in connection with the August 26, 2011 bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja.

Justice Emeka Nwite granted the application after it was moved by prosecuting counsel, Alex Izinyon (SAN), who relied on the 2022 Practice Directions issued by Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for terrorism-related cases.

Izinyon stated that the matter had been pending for several years and urged the court to allow day-to-day proceedings where possible to ensure expeditious determination.

Defence counsel did not oppose the request, and the court accordingly granted accelerated hearing.

During proceedings, a DSS operative testified in a trial-within-a-trial to determine whether statements made by the defendants were voluntary.

The witness, a computer forensic expert attached to the service’s technical department, told the court that all interviews were recorded using tamper-proof forensic equipment compliant with the Evidence Act and international standards.

He maintained that the recording devices could not be edited or paused without automatically closing and digitally sealing the session.

He also stated that in line with standard procedure, only the defendants’ faces were captured in the recordings to protect the identity of interviewers.

Further hearing in the case was adjourned until March 4.