‘Damilola Ayeni, the editor of Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), has been arrested in the Benin Republic by Beninese police who tagged him a “jihadist.”
His arrest was announced in an FIJ publication earlier today. Ayeni was on a trip to the francophone West African country for the second leg of a Nigeria-Benin environmental journalism report when the authorities of Nigeria’s western neighbours seized him in the largest city in their northern region.
On 2023 edition of the One World Media Awards’ He was on the longlist. International Journalist of the Year category. He was also shortlisted for the 2021 edition of Thompson Foundation Young Journalists (FPA) Award’s environment category.
He is currently being detained at the Commissary Central, Parakou Police Station, in Parakou.
FIJ had received a distress text from Ayeni on August 31, but it was deleted within seconds of delivery on one of its communication channels. “I have just been arrested,” he said.
Ayeni subsequently told his colleagues on a phone call that he was briefly held because the authorities stated that there were security concerns in the area. Nothing followed the text.
It wasn’t until much later that FIJ learnt that the release-and-rearrest tactic is often used by Beninese police to keep their captives in the station without alerting their friends and relatives.
Trolling, Cyberattacks, Threats… The Cost of Our Journalism at WikkiTimes
Subsequently, FIJ lost touch with him until the early hours of Tuesday morning when a man who identified himself as the ‘Commissioner of the Central Police Station of Parakou in Benin’ called and said: “Ayeni was being held at Commisseria Central, Parakou Police Station.”
The caller communicated with FIJ on WhatsApp with the number +22946066050, with the profile name ‘Agnisso Lounko’.
Currently, FIJ is working to establish physical contact with Ayeni in Parakou.
Ayeni is an environmental expert and activist, not just FIJ editor.
