Human rights lawyer, Dele Farotimi, has been granted bail by the Ekiti State High Court.

The court granted Farotimi bail in the sum of N50 million, with a surety of the same amount.

The court ruled that the surety must possess a landed property and adjourned the matter to January 29, 2025, for further proceedings.


Farotimi was taken to court by Chief Afe Babalola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, after being arrested by operatives of the Ekiti State Police Command.

Babalola, 95, accused Farotimi of defaming him in a book titled Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System.

The arrest sparked outrage across the country, prompting civil society organizations and the Nigerian Bar Association to call for the activist’s release.