Reason Given By DSS For Not Releasing Sowore, Misleading – Falana

Femi Falana, the lawyer representing Omoyele Sowore, has described as misleading the claim by the State Security Service that it failed to release Mr Sowore because no one had come to collect him.

Sowore has remained in the custody of the SSS, 48 hours after meeting his bail conditions, but the security agency has claimed that “no one had turned up to take delivery” of the RevolutionNow convener.

Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, in a statement said that the SSS again refused to release Mr Sowore after over four hours when lawyers from the defence team waited at the office of the secret police to receive the detained publisher following receipt of the release warrant by the federal agency.

“Upon acknowledging the service of the reproduction warrants, the SSS assured the bailiff and five lawyers from the defence team that our clients would be released yesterday,” Mr Falana said. “But the SSS decided not to release our clients to our lawyers who waited in vain in the agency’s headquarters for not less than 4 hours,” he added.

Read Also: Sowore Finally Meets Bail Conditions, To Be Released On Wednesday: Falana

“It is pertinent to point out that the meaning of reproduction warrant issued by a trial court is that the defendants be produced for the purpose of releasing them having met their bail conditions.

“In the instant case, the federal high court did not order the SSS to hand over Messrs Sowore and Bakare to any person but to produce them for the purpose of releasing them having met the suffocating bail conditions imposed on them by the trial court,” Mr Falana said.

The lawyer also noted that the SSS had contacted him when Sowore insisted on reaching his lawyer before writing a statement and wondered why they have failed to call him, if they felt a lawyer or anyone was necessary to release Sowore.