In disobedience to a court order granting the release of the 12 Yoruba Nation agitators arrested during a raid on Sunday ‘Igboho’ Adeyemo’s Ibadan residence on July 1, the State Security Service (SSS) on Monday released only eight of the agitators.

Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Monday, counsel to detainees, Pelumi Olajengbesi, said the SSS must release the other four detainees as the court had granted them bail.

On August 4, Peoples Gazette reported that an Abuja division of the Federal High Court granted bail to the 12 detainees.

In disobedience to the court order, the SSS refused to free them despite their release order issued and signed by Justice Obiora Egwuatu.

Mr Olajengbesi, on August 27, gave a 48 hours deadline for the release of the 12 detainees, following which he was to file a contempt suit against SSS director-general Yusuf Bichi.

Before that, Idowu Awo, counsel to SSS, had on August 24 withdrew a motion on notice filed on August 9 for further remand of four out of the 12 detainees.

He had filed an appeal on August 13 at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, seeking to revoke the bail granted to the four by Mr Egwuatu. 

He said that their level of involvement in the matter was maximum compared to the other eight.

According to Mr Olajengbesi, aside from releasing those detained illegally, the SSS must account for two of Igboho’s followers killed during the raid on July 1.