Alleged N10m Pardon Deal: Falana, Falz give Bobrisky 12 hours to retract claim

On 14 October, Mr Falana and Falz issued a cease-and-desist letter to Bobrisky.

Human rights lawyer Femi Falana and his singer son Falz have issued a 12-hour ultimatum to controversial crossdresser Idris ‘Bobrisky’ Okuneye to retract his defamatory claim against them.

In September, PREMIUM TIMES reported that Bobrisky, in an audio recording leaked by social media influencer, Martins ‘VeryDarkMan’ Otse, alleged that Mr Falana and Falz approached him about securing a presidential pardon for a fee of N10 million.

In the initial leaked audio posted by VeryDarkMan on his Instagram page, Bobrisky alleged that Falz reached out to him on behalf of his father to facilitate the presidential pardon.

Additionally, in a new audio VeryDarkMan leaked in October, Bobrisky alleged that his godfather paid N5 million to a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) to secure a presidential pardon for him.

While Bobrisky had mentioned Falz and his father in the first audio, he did not disclose the name of the SAN who received the N5 million payment. In the new audio, he alleged that the senior advocate submitted the pardon request to President Bola Tinubu on his behalf.

But in response, Mr Falana and his son denied ever contacting Bobrisky regarding a presidential pardon. Mr Falana emphasised that he has never charged for such services, stating that his children referred clients to him without seeking any payment.

However, in a new development, Mr Falana and Falz, in a cease-and-desist letter issued through Falana and Falana’s Chamber, described Bobrisky’s allegations as baseless and damaging to their reputation. The cease-and-desist dated 14 October was signed by Olorunfemi Akinyemi and Taiwo E. Olawanle from the law firm.

Furthermore, the legal team of the 66-year-old and his son demanded a retraction and an apology from Bobrisky, to be published on all platforms where the defamatory statements were made.

They gave Bobrisky a 12-hour deadline to comply with the request.

“We, therefore, demand the immediate retraction of the defamatory and derogatory statements as well as an apology prominently aired or published on all the platforms to which you have disseminated the offensive statement without any justification whatsoever.

“Be advised that if we do not receive your formal retraction and apology as demanded within 12 (twelve) hours of the receipt hereof, we shall proceed with our client’s instructions to seek appropriate legal remedies, including monetary damages, against you for your incendiary defamatory statements. We hope that the salient issues raised herein will urgently be addressed by you in your interest,” the letter read in part.

Our client’s reputation

More so, the legal team described Bobrisky’s actions as an attempt to enhance his wealth at the expense of Mr Falana and his son’s reputation.

They described the crossdresser’s decision to involve Mr Falana and Falz in the alleged criminal enterprise as a mere figment of Bobrisky’s vivid imagination.

Furthermore, the legal team stated that Bobrisky never instructed their client to draft a letter of pardon on his behalf.

“In particular, you never spoke to our client or instructed him to write a letter of pardon for you. Furthermore, you did not make a partial payment of N5,000,000 (Five Million Naira) to our client and our client never informed you that he had submitted a letter of pardon on your behalf. You will agree with us that you made all these defamatory statements in a reckless manner when you knew that you did not call our client on the phone to instruct him to write a letter of pardon on your behalf.

“Our client has never spoken to you on your pardon or any subject whatsoever.

Having regard to the fact that our client has secured pardon for not less than 300 Nigerians convicted by military and civilian courts in Nigeria, Libya, Thailand and The Gambia on a pro bono basis, your defamatory statements have severely damaged his reputation at home and abroad,” the letter read.

Background

The cease-and-desist order by Mr Falana and Falz was issued the same day the Lagos State High Court ordered VeryDarkMan (VDM) to remove defamatory comments and videos directed at Mr Falana and his son within twenty-one days.

This newspaper reported that the judge, M.O. Dawodu, delivered the ruling on Monday in response to Mr Falana’s preliminary application seeking pre-emptive measures to prevent further defamation by VeryDarkMan.

The court instructed VeryDarkMan to delete and cease the publication or circulation of the defamatory video and comments first disseminated on 24 September via his social media platforms regarding Mr Falana and Falz.

This newspaper reported that the allegations also included claims of a N15 million bribe allegedly received by officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to drop money laundering charges against Bobrisky.

The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) was alleged to have received bribes to put Bobrisky in VIP custody rather than in a regular prison space. These allegations sparked intense public debate and investigations by the EFCC, NCoS, and the House of Representatives.

In April, this newspaper reported that the EFCC arrested Bobrisky on six counts of money laundering and abuse of the naira.

During his trial at the Federal High Court in Lagos, the trial judge, Abimbola Awogboro, dismissed the money laundering charges (counts five and six) at the EFCC’s request. But the judge sentenced Bobrisky to six months in prison for Naira abuse.

The judge imposed a six-month prison term without the option of a fine, noting that the sentence would serve as a deterrent to others who engage in Naira mutilation.

Bobrisky began serving his sentence on March 24 and was subsequently released from the Kirikiri Correctional Centre on 5 August.