A Chief Magistrate Court in Sokoto has granted bail to Shafi’u Umar, who is on trial for allegedly spreading false information about Governor Ahmad Aliyu and his wife on social media.
Umar, 37, previously served as Special Assistant to former Governor Aminu Tambuwal and is accused of circulating defamatory content harmful to the current governor and his wife.
The prosecution claims that Umar shared a video of the governor’s wife, Fatima Aliyu, “spraying” money during her birthday celebration while many citizens are experiencing hardships.
Umar pleaded not guilty to the charges and had previously been remanded in a correctional facility.
In a ruling on the bail application submitted by his lead defense counsel, Al’Mustafa Abubakar, the trial judge, Fatima Hassan, approved Umar’s bail in the amount of N1 million, with a surety of the same sum.
Hassan stipulates that the surety must be a resident of Sokoto and must submit their national identity card along with two passport-sized photographs to the court.
The case has been adjourned to October 10, 2024, to allow the prosecution time to complete its investigation, as indicated by the police prosecutor.
The judge ordered that Umar be held in a correctional facility until he fulfills his bail conditions.
