Controversial social media critic, Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, has been released from police custody in Abuja after spending nine days behind bars, News About Nigeria reports.
His freedom was confirmed by lawyer Deji Adeyanju on Sunday.
In a post on social media platform X, Adeyanju expressed gratitude to everyone who contributed to securing Verydarkman’s release, particularly activist Omoyele Sowore, Kefiano, and Verydarkman’s legal team.
Verydarkman’s release comes after he was remanded for alleged cyberbullying, according to former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore.
Sowore criticised the police for allegedly misusing their power and colluding with influential individuals in the country to suppress dissent.
This isn’t the first time VeryDarkMan has encountered legal trouble this year.
In January, he was reportedly arrested following a petition by actress Tonto Dikeh regarding comments made in the case of the late Nigerian singer Mohbad.
VeryDarkMan had accused Dikeh and her colleague Iyabo Ojo of seeking attention with the late singer’s death.
His most recent arrest occurred on March 22, 2024, for alleged cyberbullying of actress Tonto Dikeh.
The news of VeryDarkMan’s arrest was initially broken by Instagram blogger @officialstelladimokokorkus, and it was later confirmed by Nollywood actress Doris Ogala, who commended Dikeh for taking action.
Ogala also took to social media to wish VeryDarkMan well during his time in custody and praised Dikeh for her actions.
@officialstelladimokokorkus reported, “ACTRESS TONTO DIKEH ARRESTS SOCIAL MEDIA CRITIC VERY DARK MAN FOR ALLEGED CYBERBULLYING AND THREAT TO LIFE FROM POSTING THAT SHE CO RUNS TOXIC BLOG THAT RUNS PEOPLE DOWN. A prominent social media critic is currently in jail in Abuja. He was detained for reportedly cyberbullying actress Tonto Dikeh and accusing her of co-running the toxic blog gistlov****, which has resulted in threats to her life from those hunting for the blog’s owner.”
