Whistleblower Who Exposed Alleged N2.5Million Blackmail Plot Against Senator Natasha Incommunicado Three Weeks After Police Arrest, Family Cries Out

The family of whistleblower and media activist Obinna Oparaku Akuwudike has raised an alarm over his continued detention and incommunicado status, three weeks after his arrest by officers of the Nigeria Police Force.

The officers were allegedly acting on the orders of the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun.

In a video exclusively obtained by SaharaReporters on Friday, Akuwudike’s distraught wife spoke out, recounting the traumatic experience and the family’s desperation for answers about her husband’s condition and whereabouts.

She said: “I have not spoken with him for three weeks. They (police) came and took him away. I haven't heard from him, and I don't know his condition.

“I am confused as I have been begging the Imo State commissioner of police to bring back my husband, all his children and all the members of the family have not heard from him since his arrest, and we don't know his condition.”

“His children have been crying every time. His father is sick, and he's worried and wants to see him, and my husband is the first son. This is three weeks since the police came here and arrested him, and the information we got is that they took him to Abuja,” she said.

Akuwudike, a journalist based in Owerri, Imo State, was arrested three weeks ago shortly after granting a viral interview to Adeola Fayehun on YouTube.

His lawyer had confirmed the arrest in a telephone conversation with SaharaReporters, saying: “He was arrested in the early hours of today. Here in Owerri.”

Sources familiar with the case insist that the arrest is linked to Akuwudike’s statements during the interview, in which he claimed he was paid ₦2.5 million by Sandra Duru, popularly known as Prof Mgbeke, to create defamatory content targeting Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

He claimed that Duru was acting under the directive and financial sponsorship of Nigeria’s Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

“I received money for producing videos but grew concerned after noticing inconsistencies in Duru’s public statements,” Akuwudike said during the interview, adding that he backed out of the assignment after realising it was a coordinated smear campaign filled with falsehood.

“After that livestream and other things, I began to uncover, I knew I had to come clean. Everything she said about Natasha was fabricated lies,” he added.

The Nigerian government has initiated legal proceedings against Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan for criminal defamation, following her claims that Senate President Akpabio and former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello conspired to assassinate her.

The case, filed before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, names the Federal Republic of Nigeria as the complainant, with Natasha as the sole defendant. The prosecution is based on Sections 391 and 392 of the Penal Code Law, and stems from statements she made during a televised interview on Channels Television's Politics Today on April 3, 2025.

“I do stand by what I said. In respect to the meeting or discussion Akpabio had with Yahaya Bello that night to eliminate me,” she stated during the live interview.

The court document, exclusively obtained by SaharaReporters, lists six witnesses, including Akpabio and Bello, as nominal complainants.