By Mick Oseji, Asaba
The Anambra State Police Command has arraigned the alleged owner and publisher of Igbo Times Magazine and iNews, Ejike Ofoegbu, for allegedly publishing false and defamatory reports against the family of Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo.
Ofoegbu was arraigned on Monday after the police received him from the Department of State Services (DSS) in Awka and concluded investigations into a petition accusing him of disseminating fabricated information capable of damaging the governor’s reputation and inciting public disaffection.
According to the Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, Tochukwu Ikenga, the suspect allegedly used social media platforms to circulate several false statements attributed to Governor Soludo and his son, Ozonna (popularly known as Ozo).
Among the posts cited by the police was a claim that Governor Soludo had publicly declared: “I will arrest anyone who calls Ozo my son. He is not my son. I disowned him years ago, and he is no longer a member of the Soludo family.”
Another post falsely attributed to Ozonna alleged that he described his father as “a drunkard who beat my mom when I was young,” while another claimed the governor jokingly said he had “ordered Ozo from Temu” and suggested his son was “Chinese-made.”
The suspect was also accused of publishing another fabricated statement purportedly made by Ozonna, challenging his father’s drinking capacity in comparison with that of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Police said investigations established that the publications were false and defamatory.
The Command disclosed that Ofoegbu has since retracted the statements and issued a public apology to Governor Soludo.
Ikenga said the court ordered that the defendant be remanded in a correctional centre pending the continuation of legal proceedings.
The police reiterated their commitment to tackling the deliberate spread of false information and warned that individuals who publish defamatory or misleading content would be held accountable under the law.
