Lawyer Charged For Cyber Crimes Against Colleague

Abuja-based Lawyer Felix Chukwuma Ashimole has been dragged before Justice Abdullahi Liman of the Federal High Court over cyber crime against a colleague.

Ashimole, publisher of Kubwa Express, in charge No:  FHC /ABJ/CR/549/2024 was accused of using online platforms to bully and tarnish the reputation of fellow lawyer Jude Ezeobi.

After a police investigation, he was charged before the court. It was established that his statements on various public forums were false and aimed at damaging Ezeobi’s and his family‘s reputations.

According to the documents before the court, Ashimole allegedly posted defamatory comments on August 21, 2024, in a WhatsApp group called “Law Center” with over 540 members, many of whom are lawyers.

Prosecutors said he falsely claimed Ezeobi had created a condolence WhatsApp group as a way to solicit funds under the guise of organising his late ex-wife Ulonna Inyama’s burial.

As argued, this post was untrue and crafted to harm Ezeobi and his family’s reputation.

In addition, Ashimole reportedly republished similar defamatory accusations on his news platform, Kubwa Express, sometime in September 2024.

These came after he issued an earlier apology and purportedly deleted the original defamatory posts. This renewed publication is in contention as he again accused Ezeobi of misleading friends into making contributions for his late ex-wife’s burial—a claim that they argue Ashimole knew was false but posted to inflict reputational harm.

In another instance on the same date, August 21, 2024, Ashimole allegedly posted yet another false, defamatory report in a larger WhatsApp group, “Law School Class of 2003,” with over 700 lawyers, accusing Ezeobi of meddling in his private life. Investigations show that Ashimole knew these statements were unfounded but published them with the aim of embarrassing and bullying Ezeobi without due recourse to him for confirmation.

Reports also show that Ashimole allegedly sent a threatening message directly to Ezeobi, warning him that he possessed documents that could “bury“ him if he wanted them to pursue that route“. This message, prosecutors claim, was intended to intimidate and silence Ezeobi.

Ashimole is facing charges related to cybercrime (protection, prevention, etc.). Act, 2015, as amended in 2024, with penalties under Section 24(1) and Section 24(2). The prosecution has filed evidence, including witness statements, WhatsApp messages, and articles from Kubwa Express, to support their case against the suspect.