Lawyer: It’s Better For Us To Kill Igboho In Benin Than Return Him To Nigeria For Slaughter

*How it all happened at Cotonou airport, by Igboho’s
wife

The legal team and supporters of Yoruba nation agitator, Sunday
Adeyemo a.k.a. Igboho, will prefer that he dies in Benin Republic
than allow him to be handed over to the Nigerian government, his
lawyer, Ibrahim David Salami, declared on Saturday.

Salami vowed that everything would be done to ensure that Igboho
is not extradited to Nigeria.

Also yesterday, Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu of Lagos State said
that Southwest governors and some other people were working behind
the scenes on Igboho’s case.

Salami, a Beninese Yoruba and law lecturer, told BBC Yoruba in
an interview monitored  that “it is important that Igboho is
not extradited to Nigeria under any circumstances.”

“It is better for him to die here in Benin than extradited to
Nigeria,” he said.

“With all that happened in his house and how the army is
threatening him, allowing for his extradition will amount to
sending him home to death.

“Rather than do that, it would be better to keep him in Benin
and kill him than to let him go to Nigeria to be slaughtered like
an animal.

“That has been our struggle and agitation here in Benin.”

He said the activist would know his fate tomorrow when the court
is expected to rule on whether he, indeed, committed an offence in
Nigeria warranting his extradition.

The federal government, he said, has written a letter to the
Beninese government listing three offences against Adeyemo, namely
illegal arms trafficking/stockpiling, public incitement and
secession.

Salami denied that a Beninese passport was found in Igboho’s
possession. But he confirmed that Igboho had a Nigerian passport
bearing his name and a German residence permit which makes
obtaining that country’s visa unnecessary.

Asked how Adeyemo was arrested, he said: “He was arrested at the
point of documentation at the airport after his (Igboho’s) luggage
had been checked in.

“The Nigerian government had notified Benin to help them arrest
him in the event that they found him.

“The security people found that the name in his passport tallied
with the name in their black book, and they asked him to step
aside.”

Salami said the legal team of five in Benin has been receiving
immense moral support from the Yoruba across the world since the
case commenced but pleaded that those thronging the court at each
hearing should keep off and allow the lawyers do their job.

He said unruly behavior on their part would not be in the best
interest of Igboho as it will lend credence to the allegation of
incitement leveled against him.

He said although Igboho remains handcuffed in detention, reports
that he was beaten or tortured are false.

How it all happened at Cotonou airport, by Igboho’s
wife
Igbohos’ wife, Ropo, has also shed light on the circumstances
surrounding their encounter with Beninese security agents last
Monday.

Ropo, in a WhatsApp post, said her husband was not caught with a
fake passport.

Her words: “Kindly disregard the news, my husband was not
arrested over a fake passport.

“Four of us were travelling out of the country: two of his
associates to Dubai while my husband and myself were returning to
Germany when we were stopped over our names which appeared on
Interpol’s watch list.

“The other two going to Dubai are already there now. As for us,
our passports were stamped by Benin immigration and while we were
about boarding, the immigration officer that attended to us
received a call and asked me to come back as he needed to check my
passport again.

“Igboho, who was not called and already ahead, then made a
detour to the toilet while the immigration perused my passport
again.

“After some few minutes, I was asked to proceed, which I did,
but I was once again asked to stop as there was another need to
check the passport.

“All this while, I was in communication with Igboho over the
phone and appealed to him not to leave the toilet since he was not
called. But Igboho insisted that he couldn’t stay behind while I
was being interrogated.

“It was when he made an appearance that the Beninese security
operatives swooped in on us and informed us that our names were on
their watch list and that they had the instruction that we should
not be allowed to travel through their borders.

“I don’t know where Nigerian bloggers got the information of the
doctored passport from, as that was not the case at all. In fact,
the Nigerian government, as we speak, doesn’t even have access to
Igboho as against the several claims in media.

“At the Cardinal Bernardin International Airport, Cotonou that
fateful day, the security operatives invited us to their station
and then the rest is history.

“There are so many negative and false reports being planted in
the media by agents of Nigerian government.

“Igboho was not chained like a dog nor weeping like a baby.

“Besides, we know of all the attempts by the Nigerian government
to get the Benin Republic to hand my husband over to them, and by
God’s grace, all would fail.

“A Police Commissioner in Nigeria even tried to create fear in
the judges by claiming that Igboho has a lot of charms and if
released may kill those judges. This is not true.”

*How it all happened at Cotonou airport, by Igboho’s
wife

The legal team and supporters of Yoruba nation agitator, Sunday
Adeyemo a.k.a. Igboho, will prefer that he dies in Benin Republic
than allow him to be handed over to the Nigerian government, his
lawyer, Ibrahim David Salami, declared on Saturday.

Salami vowed that everything would be done to ensure that Igboho
is not extradited to Nigeria.

Also yesterday, Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu of Lagos State said
that Southwest governors and some other people were working behind
the scenes on Igboho’s case.

Salami, a Beninese Yoruba and law lecturer, told BBC Yoruba in
an interview monitored  that “it is important that Igboho is
not extradited to Nigeria under any circumstances.”

“It is better for him to die here in Benin than extradited to
Nigeria,” he said.

“With all that happened in his house and how the army is
threatening him, allowing for his extradition will amount to
sending him home to death.

“Rather than do that, it would be better to keep him in Benin
and kill him than to let him go to Nigeria to be slaughtered like
an animal.

“That has been our struggle and agitation here in Benin.”

He said the activist would know his fate tomorrow when the court
is expected to rule on whether he, indeed, committed an offence in
Nigeria warranting his extradition.

The federal government, he said, has written a letter to the
Beninese government listing three offences against Adeyemo, namely
illegal arms trafficking/stockpiling, public incitement and
secession.

Salami denied that a Beninese passport was found in Igboho’s
possession. But he confirmed that Igboho had a Nigerian passport
bearing his name and a German residence permit which makes
obtaining that country’s visa unnecessary.

Asked how Adeyemo was arrested, he said: “He was arrested at the
point of documentation at the airport after his (Igboho’s) luggage
had been checked in.

“The Nigerian government had notified Benin to help them arrest
him in the event that they found him.

“The security people found that the name in his passport tallied
with the name in their black book, and they asked him to step
aside.”

Salami said the legal team of five in Benin has been receiving
immense moral support from the Yoruba across the world since the
case commenced but pleaded that those thronging the court at each
hearing should keep off and allow the lawyers do their job.

He said unruly behavior on their part would not be in the best
interest of Igboho as it will lend credence to the allegation of
incitement leveled against him.

He said although Igboho remains handcuffed in detention, reports
that he was beaten or tortured are false.

How it all happened at Cotonou airport, by Igboho’s
wife
Igbohos’ wife, Ropo, has also shed light on the circumstances
surrounding their encounter with Beninese security agents last
Monday.

Ropo, in a WhatsApp post, said her husband was not caught with a
fake passport.

Her words: “Kindly disregard the news, my husband was not
arrested over a fake passport.

“Four of us were travelling out of the country: two of his
associates to Dubai while my husband and myself were returning to
Germany when we were stopped over our names which appeared on
Interpol’s watch list.

“The other two going to Dubai are already there now. As for us,
our passports were stamped by Benin immigration and while we were
about boarding, the immigration officer that attended to us
received a call and asked me to come back as he needed to check my
passport again.

“Igboho, who was not called and already ahead, then made a
detour to the toilet while the immigration perused my passport
again.

“After some few minutes, I was asked to proceed, which I did,
but I was once again asked to stop as there was another need to
check the passport.

“All this while, I was in communication with Igboho over the
phone and appealed to him not to leave the toilet since he was not
called. But Igboho insisted that he couldn’t stay behind while I
was being interrogated.

“It was when he made an appearance that the Beninese security
operatives swooped in on us and informed us that our names were on
their watch list and that they had the instruction that we should
not be allowed to travel through their borders.

“I don’t know where Nigerian bloggers got the information of the
doctored passport from, as that was not the case at all. In fact,
the Nigerian government, as we speak, doesn’t even have access to
Igboho as against the several claims in media.

“At the Cardinal Bernardin International Airport, Cotonou that
fateful day, the security operatives invited us to their station
and then the rest is history.

“There are so many negative and false reports being planted in
the media by agents of Nigerian government.

“Igboho was not chained like a dog nor weeping like a baby.

“Besides, we know of all the attempts by the Nigerian government
to get the Benin Republic to hand my husband over to them, and by
God’s grace, all would fail.

“A Police Commissioner in Nigeria even tried to create fear in
the judges by claiming that Igboho has a lot of charms and if
released may kill those judges. This is not true.”