The Court D’Appeal of Cotonou in Benin Republic has rejected the request by the Nigerian government for the extradition of Sunday Igboho to Nigeria, also granting him access to medical care which means that his team of doctors can attend to him in custody.
The activist’s lawyers fought hard to secure his bail but the court only granted his access to medical care at the moment.
The judgment was handed down on Tuesday morning, while the court ruled that the Yoruba Nation agitator will remain in the custody of the Republic of Benin pending the conclusion of the case against him.
“The court has granted him access to medical care, although what the lawyers were fighting hard for was to secure his bail. The court is still investigating the three main allegations brought against Igboho by the Federal Government of Nigeria which claimed that Igboho is a gun runner, a terrorist and criminal who wants to divide Nigeria. All these have yet to be proven by the Nigerian government’s lawyers,” a source stated.
The Federal Government of Nigeria has been pushing for the freedom fighter’s extradition to Nigeria to face charges bordering on claims of illegal arms importation, civil unrest, and plots to disintegrate Nigeria by pushing for an independent nation of the Yoruba people, one of the three largest ethnic groups in Nigeria.
The court instead directed an investigation into all charges brought by the Nigerian government against Igboho, who was arrested alongside his wife on July 20 at the airport while preparing to fly to Germany from Cotonou.