The Department of State Services (DSS) has filed five terrorism-related charges against Kaduna-based activist Mahdi Shehu over his recent online and offline activities. The charges, filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Kaduna, follow his re-arrest two days earlier by plain-clothes security operatives at his clinic in Unguwar Dosa.
Shehu had previously been arrested in December 2024 for sharing a misleading video on social media, which suggested that the Nigerian government had allowed France to establish a military base in the North. The DSS later disclosed that this video was doctored to create public alarm.
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A day before the new charges were filed, the DSS sought a court order to detain Shehu for 60 days, citing Section 66 of the Terrorism (Prevention & Prohibition) Act, 2022. The charges against Shehu include false publication to cause public alarm, dissemination of terrorism-related false information, and intentional dissemination of false information under various acts, including the Cybercrimes Act.
The activist was granted bail on January 9, 2025, by the Kaduna State High Court in the sum of ₦3 million, with two prominent clerics as sureties. Shehu now faces a series of serious charges that could lead to further legal proceedings.
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