The Department of State Services has arrested a 26-year-old man allegedly linked to the recent attack on Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, during a political meeting in Benin City, Edo State.
Obi, alongside former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, John Oyegun, and leaders of the African Democratic Congress, reportedly escaped harm on February 24 when gunmen opened fire at the gathering.
Security sources said the suspect, identified as Udeme Monday Stephen, allegedly claimed responsibility for the incident through posts on his X account shortly after the attack, while also issuing fresh threats against Obi.
In the online messages, the suspect allegedly warned that the former presidential candidate would not be fortunate in future encounters, raising security concerns among political stakeholders.
A counter-insurgency and security analyst in the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, disclosed the arrest in a post shared on Monday, citing information obtained from security sources.
According to the report, operatives of the DSS commenced a covert investigation immediately after the threats surfaced online, deploying digital forensic tools to track and apprehend the suspect.
Sources further revealed that the suspect, said to be a teacher at a secondary school in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, was traced and taken into custody following intelligence analysis linking him to the threats.
The security agency was said to have confirmed that the suspect remains in detention and would be charged to court upon completion of investigations.