The founder of DAAR Communications Limited, Chief Raymond Dokpesi has been arrested in the United Kingdom ahead of a scheduled political meeting with Atiku Abubakar, reports said on Sunday night.
Mr Dokpesi was picked up at London Heathrow Airport as he touched down from a connecting flight via Frankfurt on Sunday evening, according to The Whistler, which first reported the incident citing passengers on the same flight. Lufthansa flight LH916 arrived in London at 5:39 p.m. local time from Frankfurt.
The reasons for the arrest of the media mogul was unknown as at press time, although a source said Mr Dokpesi might soon be cleared through immigration and be released but The Gazette learnt that he was still at the airport as of 12:06 a.m. on Monday.
The Scotland Yard did not immediately return a request seeking comments.
The detention comes as Mr Dokpesi was preparing to meet Mr Abubakar in London in a gathering a party source told The Gazette was linked to strategies leading up to the presidential election next month. Mr Abubakar is standing in the election as the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in Nigeria had in 2015, dragged Dokpesi to court and had accused him and his company of illegally receiving funds considered as proceeds of crimes from a former National Security Adviser (NSA), Colonel Sambo Dasuki.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges and went further to file a no-case submission after the prosecution closed its case in November 2018 after calling 14 witnesses.
However, the trial judge, Justice John Tsoho, rejected the no-case submission and ordered Dokpesi and his firm to enter their defence.
Not satisfied, the defendants then approached the Court of Appeal, with a request to nullify the decision and free him from the charges on the grounds that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against them.
But the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal had discharged Dokpesi, from the N2.1 billion fraud charges brought against him by the EFCC.
