The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos on Wednesday arraigned a 35-year-old woman, Ifeoma Vivian Nwafor, on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy and alleged cyberstalking involving Chief (Dr.) Mrs. Folashade Noimat Okoya MON, Managing Director of Eleganza Industries Limited and wife of the Aare of Lagos, billionaire industrialist Alhaji Chief (Dr.) Razaq Akanni Okoya, CON, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Eleganza Group of Companies.
Nwafor, who hails from Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State, was accused of using her Instagram accounts to publish what the prosecution described as offensive, false, malicious and calculated material against Chief (Dr.) Mrs. Folashade Okoya.
The defendant, a graduate of Oduduwa University, Ipetumodu, Osun State, however, pleaded not guilty to all three counts.
Following her plea, Justice Deinde Dipeolu granted Nwafor bail in the sum of N3 million, with two sureties in like sum.
The judge, however, ordered that the defendant be remanded at the Kirikiri Centre of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) pending the perfection of her bail conditions.
Nwafor was arraigned in Suit No. FHC/LAG/CR/819/2026 by the Inspector-General of Police for allegedly conspiring with others still at large and using Instagram to publish what the prosecution described as offensive, false, malicious and calculated material against Mrs. Folashade Okoya.
The matter was handled by the Legal Department, FCID Annex, Alagbon, Ikoyi, Lagos, under the supervision of CSP Adewuyi Taiwo Oyewale, Officer in Charge of the Legal Department and Stanley Nwafoaku, who represented the prosecution.
The Defendant was represented by O. J. Aduwa, Esq.
The prosecution informed the court that a three-count charge had been profiled against the defendant and urged the judge to direct that the charges be read to Nwafor for her plea.
After the charges were read, Nwafor pleaded not guilty to all three counts.
Following her plea, the prosecution urged the court to remand Nwafor in custody and adjourn the matter for trial.
However, defence counsel, Aduwa, applied for bail pursuant to Sections 35(4), 36(1) and 36(5) of the Constitution.
Aduwa urged the court to grant his client bail on liberal terms, assuring the court that she would make herself available throughout the trial.
The prosecutor said the prosecution would not oppose the bail application, having regard to the nature of the alleged offences.
In his ruling, Justice Dipeolu granted Nwafor bail in the sum of N3 million, with two sureties in like sum.
The judge stipulated that the sureties must be resident within the jurisdiction of the court, with one of them being a blood relation of the defendant.
The court further directed the sureties to provide evidence of three years’ tax payment, their National Identification Numbers (NINs) and photographs.
They were also ordered to depose to affidavits of compliance.
Justice Dipeolu equally directed Nwafor to depose to an affidavit undertaking to make herself available for trial.
The judge, while adjourning the matter until November 8 for trial, ordered that Nwafor be remanded at the Kirikiri Centre of the NCoS pending the fulfilment of her bail conditions.
In the first count, the prosecution alleged that Nwafor and others still at large, sometime in June 2026, at the Lekki-Epe Expressway, Lagos State, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, conspired to commit a felony.
The prosecution alleged that the defendant acted with intent to cause “annoyance, injury, fear, intimidation, enmity and/or needless anxiety” to Chief (Dr.) Mrs. Folashade Okoya.
According to the charge, Nwafor allegedly participated in the publication of offensive, false, malicious and calculated material on Instagram through the handles @cutie_juis and @truestorieswithifeomafans.
The prosecution further alleged that pictures of Mrs. Folashade Okoya and defamatory material concerning her were published on the internet.
The alleged offence was said to be contrary to and punishable under Section 516 of the Criminal Law of the Federation.
In the second count, the prosecution alleged that Nwafor, operating through the Instagram handle @truestorieswithifeomafans, made an online post containing a statement that was derogatory and calculated to invite “mockery, ridicule, gossip, suspicion and scandal” against Mrs. Folashade Okoya.
The alleged offence was brought under Section 24(2)(a) and (b) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015.
In the third count, the prosecution similarly alleged that Nwafor used an online link to post pictures of Mrs. Folashade Okoya alongside a statement described as derogatory and calculated to invite mockery, ridicule, suspicion and scandal.
The prosecution said the alleged conduct contravened Section 24(1)(a) and (b) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015.
It would be recalled that in June 2026, shortly after the much-celebrated traditional wedding ceremony of the daughter of Chief (Dr.) Folashade Okoya, a sensational story began circulating across social media platforms.
The report, which alleged an illicit relationship between Chief (Dr.) Folashade Okoya and a veteran in the Nigerian entertainment industry, quickly gained traction online. Within a short period, the allegation had spread across multiple social media platforms, attracting hundreds of thousands of views and generating widespread public attention.
What initially appeared as an online publication soon developed into a major social media controversy, as the allegation was repeatedly circulated, reposted and discussed across various platforms, reaching a substantial audience.
Social Media Controversy
The charges followed a social media controversy that emerged in June 2026, shortly after the traditional wedding ceremony of the daughter of Chief (Dr.) Mrs. Folashade Okoya.
At the time, a report alleging an illicit relationship between Mrs. Okoya and a veteran in the Nigerian entertainment industry began circulating widely across social media platforms.
The allegation attracted significant attention online, with the report and related posts reportedly generating hundreds of thousands of views and being repeatedly reposted and discussed across various platforms.
The widespread circulation of such material also highlights the potential legal consequences of reposting, reblogging, forwarding or otherwise republishing allegedly defamatory or unlawful online content.
Under Nigerian law, a person does not necessarily escape legal responsibility merely because he or she did not originate the material. The republication of defamatory material may constitute a fresh publication, potentially exposing the person who reposts or republishes it to an independent claim in defamation, depending on the facts and available defences. Nigerian defamation law recognises publication as a key element of liability, and online publications can fall within the scope of libel.
The position is also relevant in the context of cybercrime. Section 24 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, as amended in 2024, now contains a narrower formulation than the original provision. Among other things, it addresses knowingly or intentionally sending messages or other matter through computer systems or networks that are pornographic or known to be false for specified purposes, including causing a breakdown of law and order or posing a threat to life.
Furthermore, Section 27 of the amended Act provides for liability in relation to attempting, aiding, abetting, conspiring, counselling or procuring another person to commit an offence under the Act. Consequently, the fact that an individual was not the original author of an online publication does not, by itself, determine whether that person may incur legal responsibility; the nature of the person’s participation and the particular circumstances of the publication would be relevant.
Legal practitioners have consequently cautioned social media users against assuming that expressions such as “forwarded as received,” “I did not write it,” or simply reposting another person’s publication automatically provide protection from liability where the underlying material is defamatory or otherwise unlawful. The applicable defences and the circumstances surrounding the publication would have to be considered on a case-by-case basis.
The present criminal proceedings, however, concern the specific allegations contained in the three-count charge filed before the Federal High Court.
The allegations against Nwafor have not been determined by the court, and she has pleaded not guilty to all three counts.
The case has been adjourned until November 8, 2026, for trial.
