A Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has cleared businessman Mr. Ebi Otsaye Ogionwo of allegations made against him by the police at the instigation of Mr. Oluwatosin Adefila. The police claimed that Ogionwo obtained $300,000 from Adefila under false pretences.
In an affidavit, Ogionwo’s legal team asserted that Adefila had misrepresented the facts and misled the police into filing the suit. The affidavit stated that Ogionwo and Adefila had a business relationship spanning 15 years, marked by “full and satisfactory performance.”
It detailed that in 2018 and 2021, the corporate entity represented by Ogionwo secured loan facilities from Adefila’s Boltzemo Nigeria Ltd and promptly repaid these loans with full interest. However, the repayment of a $300,000 loan obtained in 2022 was delayed due to the non-performance of a third-party organisation engaged by Ogionwo’s corporate entity.
Despite being aware of this non-performance, Adefila exerted intense pressure on Ogionwo for repayment, even sponsoring publications in both print and online media that depicted Ogionwo as dishonest and fraudulent, the affidavit claimed.
On January 30th, 2025, the presiding judge, Justice D.E. Osiagor, ordered Adefila and his associates to retract and remove all defamatory publications portraying Ogionwo negatively. The judge also demanded that Adefila’s lawyer, Mr. Justice Akose, appear in court on May 26th, 2025, to justify the threatening messages sent to Ogionwo.
Furthermore, Judge D.E. Osiagor ordered that the outstanding sum of $185,000 owed by Ogionwo’s corporate entity be deposited in the bank account of the Federal High Court Deputy Chief Registrar, pending the retraction and removal of all offensive publications made against Ogionwo. Checks confirmed that Ogionwo’s corporate entity has complied with this court order. Consequently, his legal team stated that all debts owed to Adefila’s Boltzemo Nigeria Ltd have now been fulfilled.
In response to the defamatory actions, Ogionwo’s legal team has initiated a defamation suit in the High Court of Lagos State, Epe Division, against Mr. Oluwatosin Adefila; the Nigeria Police Force; the Inspector-General of Police; the Commissioner of Police, FCID, Lagos; S. O. Ayodele, Esq; Independent Communications Network Ltd; Akin Kuponiyi; Town Crier; EchoNews; and Felix Kuyi.
The lawyers claim that their client’s image and reputation have been irreparably harmed by these defamatory publications. They are seeking Two Billion Naira (N2,000,000,000) in damages for defamation, cyberbullying, intimidation, harassment, and online stalking.
Additionally, Ogionwo’s lawyers are requesting a court order for the defendants to issue an unreserved apology to Ebi Ogionwo and for the sixth to the tenth defendants to publish a retraction of the defamatory story.
