Nigerian security operatives allegedly arrest journalist
A journalist with news outlet OrderPaper Edna Ulaeto has been allegedly arrested by Security operatives believed to be from the State Security Service (SSS) following a raid of her home on Friday while she was still in her nightwear.
Penpushing reports that management of the media outlet in a statement said a group of armed men who identified themselves as officers of the State Security Service (SSS) from the Office of the National Security Adviser stormed Ulaeto’s residence early Friday morning.
The statement said the operatives reportedly manhandled her while she was still in her nightwear and took her to an undisclosed location, leaving her family and neighbours in shock and fear, adding that her phone number had been tracked without authorisation.
Penpushing further reports that the statement stated that her neighbours who attempted to intervene or document the incident were reportedly pushed aside, with some forced to delete photos and videos under the threat of arrest.
The management of the organisation in the statement made available to journalists said no formal notice or invitation was sent to Ulaeto or OrderPaper before the raid, raising concerns about the legality of the operation.
‘The young lady, still in her casual nightwear, was violently manhandled and whisked away to an unknown destination, leaving her family and neighbours in shock and fear. This brazen, terrifying act has left the entire staff of OrderPaper living in fear, uncertain of what may happen next’, the statement read
Penpushing also reports that the management, however, called on civil society organisations and the international community to demand immediate release of the journalist and to condemn what it described as an attack on press freedom and basic human rights.
The arrest is believed to be linked to a recent OrderPaper’s article that mistakenly reported an alleged State Security Service (SSS) operation at the National Assembly, supposedly aimed at preventing an attempt to remove the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, which the newspaper retracted and issued a public apology
Penpushing reports that all efforts to reach the arrested female journalist were unsuccessful, heightening fears about her safety, while as at the time of filing this report, no official response or statement from the security authorities
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