A disputed senatorial primary result document is at the center of the arrest, with a Senior Magistrate Court in Abuja having issued a bench warrant for Okorocha alongside former Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, Timothy Ama Chuks, and Amen Okorocha, all accused of criminal conspiracy, forgery, and presenting false documents allegedly claiming that Okorocha won the APC primary for Imo West. The bench warrant, which covers all four accused persons, was obtained after investigators presented evidence to the court suggesting the documents in question were submitted to electoral authorities as authentic primary results.
Police arrested Okorocha at REIZ Continental Hotel in Abuja on Monday night over an ongoing criminal investigation centered on alleged conspiracy, forgery, and impersonation arising from the disputed APC Imo West senatorial primary. Officers from the Force Criminal Investigation Department carried out the arrest, according to sources familiar with the operation.
Imo State Police spokesperson CSP Aniete Iniedu confirmed the arrest, saying Okorocha was released on bail after about one hour of interrogation and directed to return Tuesday for further questioning.
Okorocha was initially invited to the Force Headquarters, Abuja, on September 2, but the appointment was rescheduled to September 8 at the request of his lawyers, a date he also failed to honor. Police sources indicated that his continued absence following both missed appointments was a decisive factor in their decision to proceed with the bench warrant application.
His failure to honor repeated police invitations in connection with the ongoing criminal investigation prompted the police to obtain a bench warrant for his arrest.
The Independent National Electoral Commission had reportedly asked the police and the Department of State Services to investigate a document it said contradicted the party’s submitted primary results. INEC’s referral to security agencies came after the commission flagged inconsistencies between the document in question and official records already in its custody from the APC.
Okorocha had earlier denied that any court order had been issued for his arrest over the allegations of criminal conspiracy, forgery, and the use of false documents, with the denial issued in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary and Special Adviser on Media, Sam Onwuemeodo.
The former governor also accused the Imo State government of being behind what he described as fake news and threatened further legal action if those behind the story did not produce the purported court order.
Okorocha was picked up at REIZ Continental Hotel in central Abuja, bringing to a head days of controversy over reports that a court had ordered his arrest, a claim his media office had vigorously denied.
The arrest follows a legal dispute over documents allegedly presenting Okorocha as the winner of the Imo West senatorial primary, with police operatives carrying out the detention at the REIZ Continental Hotel on Monday night, October 12.
The development came days after reports emerged that a senior magistrate court in Abuja had issued a bench warrant covering Okorocha and three other individuals connected to the same allegations. Court records seen by journalists indicated the warrant was signed and active prior to the Monday night arrest at the hotel.
Okorocha was arrested on Monday night at REIZ Continental Hotel in central Abuja and released after about an hour of interrogation, with police confirming he remained subject to further questioning.
His media office had previously denied that any court issued a bench warrant against him, contradicting what police sources and multiple court documents had indicated.
CSP Iniedu confirmed to Channels Television on Tuesday that Okorocha was released on bail and directed to return to the Force Headquarters that same day for further questioning. Iniedu did not specify the bail conditions imposed on the former governor or whether any of the three other individuals named in the bench warrant had also been contacted by police.
The police have not publicly disclosed further details of the specific allegations against Okorocha, as the investigation into the disputed Imo West APC senatorial primary result continues.
