Reporter thrown in jail over abducted girls protest stories

Lafia - The Police on Monday arraigned Hir Joseph, Nasarawa state correspondent ofDaily Trustnewspaper, before Chief Magistrates’ Court 2 sitting in Lafia, on allegation of injurious falsehood. Police prosecutor Joshua Abolarin told the court that the accused wrote a story captionedFemale NSCDC, police personnel demand rescue of Chibok girl, published on the May 9 edition of theDaily Trust. Abolarin said that the accused further published another story captioned Police detained six female corps over save our girls protestin theSunday Trustof May 11. He alleged that the accused wrote the stories with the intent to injure or cast aspersions on the credibility of the Nigeria Police Force or give the impression that the police were against the wisdom of the Federal Government in steps taken to rescue the girls. According to him, the accused was charged with the offence of injurious falsehood under section 393 sub- section 1 of the Penal Code. Abolarin asked the court to keep the accused in custody, adding that if granted bail he might commit another offence. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge. Counsel to the accused, Mohammed Danjuma, argued that the offence was a bailable offence, since it was not a capital offence. He urged the court to grant the accused bail. Magistrate Yakubu Eggah granted the accused bail to the tune of N150 000 and adjourned the case till June 19 for hearing. -