A social media personality, Martins Otse, known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), is back in court on Thursday for allegedly bullying several public figures online, including actresses Iyabo Ojo and Tonto Dikeh, as well as music producer Samklef.
VDM appeared before Justice Musa Liman at the Federal High Court in Abuja, facing five charges but pleaded not guilty.
His lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, asked the court to allow him to stay out on bail under the same conditions as before, and the prosecution agreed. The court kept the original bail terms and scheduled the next hearing for July 24.
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This case was initially overseen by another judge, Justice Mobolaji Olajuwon, before it was reassigned to Justice Liman. VDM was first brought to court on May 22, 2024, and was granted bail of N10 million, which came with strict conditions.
The accusations against VDM include posting harmful and false information on Instagram. He allegedly claimed that Iyabo Ojo had an inappropriate relationship with her daughter, suggested that Tonto Dikeh misused money meant for a charity campaign, and made negative remarks about high-ranking police officials and lawmakers.