Anambra: Blogger faces trial over alleged fake stories on Soludo, son

The Anambra State Government has arraigned blogger and publisher of Igbo Times Magazine and INews, Ejike Ofoegbu, over alleged criminal defamation and cybercrime linked to reports published about Governor Chukwuma Soludo and his family.

The development was disclosed by Anambra State New Media in a post on X on Monday.

The post read: “Ejike Ofoegbu (Experience), the Owner and publisher of Igbo Times Magazine and I News, who published fake news against Gov. Soludo’s family, arrives in Magistrate Court Amawbia, as his criminal defamation and cybercrime offence case continues.”

The arraignment comes days after Ofoegbu publicly apologised and issued an unconditional retraction over a series of reports he admitted were fabricated.

In a statement titled “Public Apology and Full Retraction,” the publisher admitted that several stories concerning Governor Soludo and his son, Ozonna, were false and created to attract online traffic and generate financial gain.

He stated: “I publicly admit that the stories I published concerning Governor Soludo and his son were completely fake, false, fabricated, and untrue.

“They did not come from Governor Soludo, his son, his family, or any official representative.

“They were not based on any verified facts or credible source, and they should never have been presented as news.”

Ofoegbu also retracted several viral reports, including claims that Governor Soludo had disowned his son, that Ozonna described his father as a drunkard who abused his mother, and other fabricated statements involving the governor and his family.

The blogger further admitted that the publications were motivated by the pursuit of audience engagement and financial gain, while apologising to Governor Soludo, his family, readers and the people of Anambra State.

𝕤𝕖𝕖 𝕞𝕠𝕣𝕖/𝕨𝕒𝕥𝕔𝕙 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕧𝕚𝕕𝕖𝕠 𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕖