In April, Idris Olanrewaju Okuneye, the Nigerian transgender woman better known as Bobrisky, was sentenced to six months imprisonment without the option of fine by a Lagos Federal High Court.

The sentencing came after he was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commision (EFCC) on a four-count charge bothering on the abuse of the naira.

A few weeks after Bobrisky’s sentencing, Oriental Times had reported that the celebrity was occupying a fully furnished flat in a newly built VIP apartment at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre.

It was also said that the transgender woman would regularly share money to inmates at the facility, wear female clothes and receive visitors from time to time.

READ ALSO: EXCLUSIVE: Out of 6 Months, Bobrisky Spent Only 3 Weeks In Kirikiri Prison

In a swift response, however, the Lagos State Command of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), through Rotimi Oladokun, its spokesperson, issued a statement on April 29 to debunk the claim. Other commentaries, such as this, then branded the previous report fake news.

The NCoS claimed that Bobrisky, like other convicted inmates, had been allocated a shared cell within the facility.

“The attention of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Lagos State Command, has been drawn to some mischievous and misleading online publications,” the statement reads.

“Without prejudice to NCoS right to seek legal redress for the libellous publication, outlined are clarification on the said issues.

“The convicted inmate, Okuneye Idris Olanrewaju, aka Bobrisky, is currently serving a 6-month jail term for abuse and mutilation of the Naira note within the custody of the Custodial Centre in the State.

“Idris has been allocated a shared cell with other convicted inmates. There are no en-suite or ‘one bedroom flat’ style cells in our Custodial centre, as the cell blocks infrastructure are built as shared buildings, to accommodate multiple inmates.

“The convict is remanded in a male Custodial centre and observes all regulations and rules in place at the centre, especially with regards to dress code. He wears male designated correctional clothing for convicted inmates.

“Idris is being treated just as every other inmate, without any special amenities or privileges accorded. Note: All inmates are entitled to Family and Legal visit. These visits are monitored and regulated by NCoS.

“The Controller of Corrections, Lagos Command, enjoined the general public to disregard the said malicious publication.”

A LIE REVEEALED

The statement issued by the NCoS has turned out to be untrue as Martins Vincent Otse, a social media activist popularly known as VeryDarkMan, released a phone conversation on Tuesday to inform the public that Bobrisky did not serve the six-month term in prison.

READ ALSO: JUST IN: FG Suspends 2 Prison Officials Over ‘N15m Bobrisky Bribe’

During the phone conversation, Bobrisky, while talking to a ‘friend’, confessed to serving her term outside the prison and paying N15 million to have the EFCC expunge ‘money laundering’ from the charges against her.

On Friday, EQ also published an exclusive revealing that the transgender woman only spent three weeks in prison before being shipped out of the prison walls to a tastefully furnished apartment. EQ can also confirm that Bobrisky never stayed in a shared cell throughout her three weeks in Kirikiri, rather she received VIP treatment and was heavily-guarded by prison warders.

The controversy has since attracted renewed attention to corruption in Nigerian prisons, with Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo already ordering “an unconditional and comprehensive investigation into the allegations of bribery and corruption within the Nigerian Correctional Service”.

The federal government has suspended two NCoS officials after it commenced an investigation into claims of bribery involving Bobrisky.

The post FLASHBACK: In April, Prisons Service Lied Bobrisky Was Serving Jail Term in a Shared Cell appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.