A man identified as Sulaiman Maiyegun, also known as Afobaje, who was arrested for beating his wife and bragging about it on Facebook, has been granted bail by an Igbosere Magistrate Court.
Police in Lagos State had arrested him on May 14 over sharing photos of his wife’s bleeding face on Facebook after battering her to stupor.
Maiyegun was arraigned on a two-count charge of assault occasioning harm and offensive publication.
In her ruling, Magistrate Folake Oshin granted the defendant bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties who must be a cleric and a family member to the defendant.
Maiyegun had on May 5 posted to his Facebook account, “I beat my wife and I am waiting for her police because I talked to a woman.”
Reports said Maiyegun had an altercation with his wife over the fact that he was speaking to another woman, which led to him beating his wife.
The post was attached with several pictures of the battered woman, identified as Mariam Gabriel, with blood oozing from her forehead.
Maiyegun’s action attracted rebuke from many Nigerians on social media, which later got the attention of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT) who reached out to the Commander, Area J Police Command, ACP Gbolahan Odugbemi, and got the suspect arrested.
At his arraignment before the Igbosere Magistrates’ Court on Friday, Maiyegun pleaded not guilty to the two-count charge.
The prosecutor, SP Shinaolu Adeoye, told the court that the defendant committed the offences on May 5 at 12:13pm at Maiyegun town, Jakande Estate, Eti-Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State.
He added that the offences contravened Sections 57 and 173 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
The defendant’s counsel, Mustapha Danesi, urged the court to grant his client bail on the most liberal terms, stating that the matter was as a result of a family crisis.
The Magistrate granted him bail and adjourned the case until June 22.
