IGP Orders Arrest of Whistleblower: The N2.5M Smear Campaign Unveiled

Akuwudike further claimed in the interview that Duru's smear campaign against the senator was funded and politically supported by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

Under the direction of Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun, members of the Nigeria Police Force have detained media activist and journalist Maazi Obinna Oparaku Akuwudike.

Akuwudike was detained early Thursday morning at around three in the morning in Owerri, the capital of Imo State, after giving Adeola Fayehun a widely shared interview on her YouTube channel.

During a phone call with SaharaReporters, his attorney verified the development, stating: "He was arrested in the early hours of today." In Owerri, here.

The journalist's shocking disclosures that he was allegedly paid ?2.5 million by Sandra Duru, also known as "Prof Mgbeke," to create derogatory content against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan seem to be connected to his detention.

Akuwudike further claimed in the interview that Duru's smear campaign against the senator was funded and politically supported by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

"I got paid to make videos, but I became worried when I saw contradictions in Duru's public remarks," Akuwudike stated.

He clarified that he was originally engaged for a media production project but chose to get out after determining the goal was nefarious and baseless.

He claims that hearing some of Duru's contentious remarks on a webcast marked a turning point in his life.

"I realized I had to come clean after that broadcast and other things I started to find out. He claimed that all of her statements on Natasha were falsehoods.

The Nigerian government is scheduled to call Senate President Godswill Akpabio, former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, and four other people as witnesses in a high-profile criminal case against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, according to a report by SaharaReporters.


This comes after the Nigerian government decided to charge the senator from Kogi with a crime after she said on television that Akpabio and Bello planned to kill her.

The Federal Republic of Nigeria was named as the complainant and Senator Natasha as the only defendant in the action, which was brought before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, according to court records that SaharaReporters have received.

by Section 391 of the Penal Code Law, Cap 89, Laws of the Federation, 1990, the senator is being accused by the government of criminal defamation, a crime that is punishable by Section 392 of the same law.

The charges stem from an interview the senator gave on Channels Television's Politics Today show on April 3, 2025, in which she publicly accused Bello and Akpabio of planning her murder.

Additionally, she had claimed that the Senate President had planned to remove her security detail in order to put her in danger.

"I stand by my statement. During the live interview, she made reference to the meeting or conversation Akpabio had with Yahaya Bello that evening in order to get rid of me.

The government plans to bring six people as witnesses to bolster the allegations, according to a court document obtained by SaharaReporters.

As a nominal complainant, Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio is scheduled to testify about his knowledge of the issue. No. 13 TY Danjuma Street, Asokoro is his listed address.

Similar testimony is expected from Yahaya Adoza Bello, who is also listed as a nominal complainant. No. 9 Benghazi Street, Wuse Zone 4 is his address.

Senator Ekpenyong Asuquo, who was alleged by Natasha to have driven Bello to the Hilton Hotel for the alleged plot meeting, is listed as a witness with an address at the Senate Building, National Assembly Complex.