The Nigeria Immigration Service named social media personality Okuneye Idris, also known as Bobrisky, as a person of interest in an ongoing probe on Monday.

The Service confirmed that its officers intercepted Bobrisky at the Sème border while he was attempting to flee the country earlier that day.

The controversy surrounding Bobrisky began in April 2024, when he was sentenced to six months in prison by the Federal High Court in Lagos for naira abuse.

Although he was officially incarcerated at Kirikiri Prison, reports later emerged alleging that Bobrisky spent only three weeks in the facility before being discreetly moved to a private location.

This sparked widespread speculation that his release and special treatment were facilitated through bribery, with accusations of a N15m payment made to officials to secure his transfer and favorable conditions.

The situation escalated in late September when social media influencer VeryDarkMan posted an audio recording allegedly involving Bobrisky.

In the leaked recording, Bobrisky purportedly claimed that music artist Falz and his father, human rights lawyer Femi Falana, approached him during his imprisonment, seeking N10m to secure a presidential pardon.

In response, Falana and Falz issued a “cease-and-desist” letter on October 16, 2024, demanding a retraction and public apology for what they termed defamatory statements.

Bobrisky, however, denied making the claims, stating that he was not responsible for the leaked content and urging the Falanas to hold VDM accountable instead.

In a statement signed by the Service Public Relations Officer, Mr. Kenneth Udo, on Monday evening, Immigration stated, “The Service wishes to inform the public that OKUNEYE IDRIS is a person of interest over recent issues of public concern.”

The statement, titled “Nigeria Immigration Service Intercepts Idris Okuneye (Bobrisky) at Sème bordering attempting to flee the country,” added, “In keeping with its commitment to securing the borders, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) intercepted Okuneye Idris Olanrewaju, otherwise known as Bobrisky, at the Seme Border over an attempt to exit the country.

“He is undergoing interrogation and will be handed over to the appropriate authorities for further action.

“The Service assures the public that it will continue to be civil and professional in its statutory responsibility of manning the country’s borders.”

Bobrisky’s arrest by the NIS followed the submission of a report by the panel set up to investigate the allegations of corruption against the Nigeria Correctional Service over his detention.

The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, constituted an investigative panel chaired by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Magdalena Ajani, and ordered a probe into the alleged corruption and other violations against the Service.

Reading the phase one report of the panel on Monday, a member of the panel and the Executive Director and founder of Prisoners’ Rehabilitation and Welfare Action, Uju Agomoh, said the panel found no evidence that Bobrisky slept outside the prison walls after he was sentenced.

She said, “The panel did not find any evidence thus far that suggested that Mr Okuneye slept outside the custodial centre during the period of his imprisonment, which was from 12th April 2024 to 5th August 2024, which is a six-month correctional sentence with the usual remission applicable.”

Agomoh stated that during this period, Bobrisky was transferred from the Kuje Custodial Centre to the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kirikiri-Apapa, Lagos, and later to the Maximum Security Custodial Centre, from which he was discharged after completing his sentence.

She added that Bobrisky enjoyed several privileges while in the two custodial centres, including furnished single cells, a humidifier, and frequent visits from family members and friends.

Agomoh said, “The panel also found that Mr Okuneye Idris enjoyed several privileges while in custody, both at the Medium Security and the Maximum Security Custodial Centres, which include, especially the following: furnished single cells, humidifier, lots of visits by his family members and friends as he desired, self-feeding, designated inmates to run errands for him, access to fridge and television, and possibly access to his phone.

“It is necessary to further investigate if the above privileges provided for Okuneye Idris were financially motivated and based on corrupt practices by correctional officers

“The panel believes that the peculiar case of the inmates and the inmates’ physical looks and behaviour pose a threat, and the lack of laid-down rules for the treatment of such a case may have necessitated such privileges to be granted to Okunenye Idris.”

The panel recommends that clear guidelines be established to guide operations regarding such incidents in the future.

“Steps should be taken to avoid the obvious discriminatory practices in relation to the socio-economic levels and other status of inmates,” she added.

Nigeria’s President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has urged industry stakeholders to collaborate with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to achieve the one million barrels of crude oil per day (1MBOPD) initiative.

Tinubu spoke on Monday during the inauguration of the project 1MBOPD initiative, which also marked the third anniversary of the NUPRC under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA 2021), in Abuja.

The project is an NUPRC collaborative initiative to evolve alternative funding mechanisms to unlock incremental oil production in the short-to-medium term with expanded opportunities for all industry stakeholder groups.

Represented by George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Tinubu urged key industry stakeholders to work alongside the NUPRC to achieve the outlined targets for increasing oil production within set deadlines.

He stated that the shared responsibility would require cooperation from government agencies, major producers, service providers, financiers, host communities, and other stakeholders.

The president said it would “boost government revenue, eliminate poverty, and contribute to an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) through a balanced, shared prosperity.”

“These commitments will be critical in ensuring that we achieve an incremental production in the next 12 months. Growing not just production levels, but also increasing efficiency and competitiveness of our industries,” Tinubu said.

• “Policy Reforms Producing Positive Results”

Tinubu said upon taking office, his administration implemented policy reforms and interventions aimed at stability, growth, and sustainability, which have now started to produce positive results.

The president said his administration remains committed to decarbonisation strategies in the oil and gas sector, while maintaining a renewed focus on economic diversification, the utilisation of oil and gas resources, and industrial development.

He expressed satisfaction that the sector has witnessed significant financial and investment decisions across the value chain since the reforms were introduced.

“To this end, we must work more subtly to grow production, meet domestic energy security needs and shore up foreign exchange gains,” the president said.

“I congratulate all active oil and gas industry players for the modest gains in oil production which rose to 1.6 million barrels per day.

“I am pleased that the NUPRC, working with industrial stakeholders has transformed that executive charge into a tangible measure set as progress to one million barrels per day in oil and gas production.

“By enhancing domestic energy security and supporting growing vibrancy, this initiative will ensure that Nigeria remains a crucial player in the global energy asset and means of worldwide energy transition.

“Increased oil production will mean more job opportunities, increased revenue for the government, and more stable energy supply for the assets.”

Tinubu also commended the Ministers of State for Petroleum Resources (oil and gas), NUPRC, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), industry leaders, and oil producers for their efforts in addressing contemporary challenges and driving development in the sector.

The Confederation of African Football will announce its decision on Wednesday regarding the “botched AFCON qualifying Group D” match between Libya and Nigeria, which was supposed to take place at “Benina Martyrs Stadium” on October 15.

According to “Libya Al-Ahrar Channel,” CAF will reveal the final decision concerning the players’ ordeal during the first leg in Nigeria, which ended 1-0 in favor of the “Super Eagles,” and the reverse fixture that would have taken place at Libya’s first all-seater stadium, with a capacity of 10,550.

The outlet also mentioned that the “Libyan Football Federation” submitted all necessary documents, with a specialized lawyer assigned to oversee the Libyan file with CAF.

A day after the canceled match, CAF removed the fixture from its calendar and announced the cancellation just hours before kick-off, referring the matter to the “Disciplinary Committee” for further consideration.

In a statement released on Monday, the “Libyan Football Federation” criticized the actions taken by the Nigerian team for refusing to play against Libya and confirmed its intent to take all legal steps to safeguard the interests of their national team.

Nigeria arrived for the match on October 14, but their flight was redirected to “Al Abraq International Airport,” which is around three hours by road from “Benghazi,” the match venue. The Libyan authorities held the Nigerian team for 17 hours, causing them trauma before they eventually returned home.

Nigeria filed a complaint with CAF, recounting their experience. Meanwhile, the “Libyan Federation” claimed that the Nigerian team was uncooperative during both the first and second legs, stating their own experience in Nigeria was far worse compared to what they went through during the first leg.

CAF described the situation involving the Nigerian team in Libya as “extremely dangerous.” CAF further stated that it had been in contact with both the “Libyan” and “Nigerian authorities” after the Nigerian team was subjected to troubling conditions at the airport for several hours.

The matter has been referred to the “Disciplinary Committee” to investigate and take appropriate measures against those who breached regulations.