A trending online video has shown protesters in Abuja at the headquarters of the Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) demanding the release of social media critic, Martins Vincent Otse, popularly called VeryDarkMan.
The demonstrators, who gathered in large numbers on Monday, chanted “#FreeVDM” while holding placards with inscriptions such as “Activism is not a sin”, “VDM is the masses’ liberator”, and “VDM has committed no offence”.
LEADERSHIP reports that VeryDarkMan was recently arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over multiple petitions filed against him.
VDM’s legal representative, activist-lawyer Deji Adeyanju, however, said VeryDarkMan was ambushed by EFCC operatives inside the GTBank premises.
The bank denied the claim and released CCTV footage, stating that the social media influencer was not picked up on its premises and urged further investigations to be conducted.
In the video, VDM was seen leaving the banking hall and heading towards the car park before his arrest. The footage, however, did not capture the actual arrest, most likely because the security cameras did not cover that specific area outside the bank.
