Two senior prison officials in Nigeria have been suspended following allegations of bribery involving popular transgender celebrity Bobrisky. The controversy arose after social media influencer Martins Otse, known as VeryDarkMan, claimed that anti-corruption officials were bribed to dismiss money laundering charges against Bobrisky, who has denied the allegations.
Bobrisky, whose real name is Idris Okuneye, was released from prison last month after serving a six-month sentence for currency abuse, while a court dismissed the money laundering charges. Nigeria’s Transparency International corruption index ranked the country 145 out of 180 last year, highlighting the prevalence of bribery in government institutions.
The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have launched investigations into a viral video linked to the bribery claims. In the video, a person alleged to be Bobrisky purportedly stated that she paid $9,000 to EFCC officials to drop the charges, as well as millions of naira for a private apartment near the prison.
With nearly five million Instagram followers, Bobrisky took to the platform to refute the claims, stating, “I didn’t pay any EFCC money, which is a very big lie. I served my term in full and I came out. Discard any false information.”
In response to the allegations, the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire, and Immigration Services Board confirmed the suspension of the two prison officers involved, as well as two others over separate accusations. The board emphasized that the suspensions aim to facilitate further investigations, promising to release the findings to the public once completed.