A Lagos State High Court at Tafawa Balewa Square has acquitted and discharged Frederick Nwajagu, the “Eze Ndigbo of Ajao Estate,” of terrorism charges.
The court ruled on Wednesday that the Lagos State Government failed to prove any of the charges against Nwajagu. However, Justice Yetunde Adesanya convicted him for parading himself as a certified chief in Lagos, which violated the Oba and Chiefs Law of the state. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison for the offense.
The judge ordered Nwajagu’s release, as he had already spent nearly two years in custody.
The 67-year-old was arrested on April 1, 2023, after a viral video showed him allegedly threatening to invite members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) to Lagos to protect Igbo residents’ properties.
In the 49-second video, Nwajagu was heard saying, “IPOB, we will invite them. They have no job. All of the IPOB will protect all of our shops. And we have to pay them. We have to mobilize for that. We have to do that. We must have our security so that they will stop attacking us at midnight, in the morning, and in the afternoon.”
A few days later, Nwajagu was remanded in prison by a Yaba magistrate court and was subsequently arraigned by the Lagos State Government on nine counts of terrorism and impersonation.