DSS frees four Bayelsa men held since 2022 over IPOB links, pays them ₦20m

The Department of State Services (DSS) has released four men from Bayelsa State who had been held for about four and a half years over suspected links to the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The men, Emele Uduma Ibe, Berefgagha Appah, Ondokeyilemi Aggry and Oyeinmokebebeton Aggry, were arrested in May 2022 in the Sampou and Akeddei communities, according to security sources.

The service has approved an initial ₦20 million in compensation, ₦5 million for each man. The sources said the four will also get medical and psychological support to help them settle back into society.

According to the sources, investigators concluded that the men had been misled by IPOB members, who are now standing trial, into believing they would each receive ₦100,000 a month from the Federal Government's amnesty programme.

Their lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, welcomed the release. He said the men had been wrongly arrested under the previous DSS leadership and praised the current Director-General for his respect for human rights. The release is said to be part of a wider review of old terrorism-related cases.