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By Andrew Wynne
I hardly know any of those detained for the alleged crimes associated with me. I have never met most of them and had no contact with them before they were detained. Yomi has worked with me for nearly five years, but beyond this I have never had any contact of any sort with most of the others that I am accused of conspiring with.
I am completely innocent of having committed any crime in Nigeria over the last 25 years that I have been visiting the country. The police have no evidence of the crimes that they claim I have committed. The evidence that they have given to the court does not support any of the charges against any of the accused. I am a 70-year-old retired accountant. I am not an “international terrorist.”
The police have not provided any evidence that I paid people to support the protests. I did not pay anyone for such activities. The police blocked 32 bank accounts, but they have not provided a single example of any transaction to support their claim that I funded treason or any other illegal activity.
I have been travelling to Nigeria regularly, five or six times a year, since at least 2008. I have had a business visa to cover each of these visits. The police claim that I visited other African countries 13 times in two months. This is a complete fabrication.
I have been operating the book shop, Iva Valley Books, perfectly openly for the last seven years. To my knowledge the police, DSS and other security operatives have never visited the book shop. We also organised a book stall in Eagle Square during the NLC May Day celebrations over the last two years. On each occasion, DSS officers came and greeted us and looked at the book stall. Beyond this they expressed no interest in myself or the book stall.
The nickname claimed for me by the police of Povich is their fabrication. I had never before even heard of such a name. I have not been to Russia in the last 20 years. I only ever visited the country for a short holiday when I was 18 and again briefly on a business trip over 20 years ago. Similarly with Sudan, I worked there as a teacher in the 1970s, but I have not visited what is now Sudan in the last 45 years.
I have never called for a military coup in any country. I support democracy and do not believe that military coups are a step forward. I do not think the recent coups in West Africa have benefited the common people in those countries.
I freely flew out of the country from Abuja Airport on 4th August on a ticket that I had purchased nearly three months earlier. I had no reason to flee and had already booked a ticket to return as usual on 18th September.
I hardly know any of those detained for the alleged crimes associated with me. I have never met most of them and had no contact with them before they were detained. Yomi has worked with me for nearly five years, but beyond this I have never had any contact of any sort with most of the others that I am accused of conspiring with.
I believe that all of the 10 people who have been charged with alleged offences associate with me are completely innocent. When they are found not guilty, my name will also be cleared.
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