On Friday, Justice Murtala J. Zubair of the Kaduna State High Court granted bail to activist Mahdi Shehu in the sum of N3 million. The bail conditions include two respected clerics as sureties, the surrender of his international passport, a restriction on travel without court approval, and a requirement to report monthly to security officials.
Justice Zubair emphasized that the decision to grant bail was based on legal principles and the evidence presented, while reminding the court that Mahdi Shehu is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Chronicles Reporters earlier reported that on January 1, a Kaduna Chief Magistrate Court had remanded Mahdi in the Nigerian Correctional Centre, Kaduna. His detention followed his arrest by the Department of State Services (DSS) after he refused to retract viral videos alleging that President Bola Tinubu approved the establishment of a French military base in northern Nigeria.
The activist’s claims were tied to a statement made by Niger Republic’s military leader, Abdourahamane Tchiani, about alleged French military activities in the region. However, both National Security Adviser Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and Minister of Information Alhaji Mohammed Idris dismissed Mahdi’s allegations as baseless.
The DSS arraigned Mahdi before Magistrate Abubakar Lamido on charges of conspiracy, aiding and abetting terrorism under the Terrorism (Prevention & Prohibition) Act, 2022, and inciting public disturbances under Kaduna State’s Penal Code Law, 2017.
The videos posted by Mahdi, which went viral, were subjected to fact-checking by media outlets such as Daily Trust and The Cable. Their investigations revealed that the footage, allegedly showing French military activities, was actually from 2013. It depicted Nigerian soldiers at Bamako Airport, Mali, during an African Union Peacekeeping Mission.
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