Fake Tinubu letter: DSS arraigns Kaduna man, files three-count charge

The Department of State Services (DSS) has arraigned a Kaduna man, Mubarak Abdullahi, over the alleged circulation of a fake letter purportedly written by President Bola Tinubu to the President of the United States.

Abdullahi, also known as Sardaunan Samari, faces a three-count charge bordering on cybercrime and defamation, according to information disclosed by Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.

Onanuga said the suspect was arraigned before Chief Magistrate Court No. 10, Kabala Doki, Kaduna, after his arrest on September 28 for allegedly sharing the disputed document on Facebook.

The post reportedly carried the caption, “ATIKU IS COMING,” in reference to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

According to Onanuga, Abdullahi admitted during investigations that he shared the document and apologised for his actions. The suspect was subsequently remanded at the Nigerian Correctional Centre in Kaduna.

The DSS has also filed a three-count charge against him at the Federal High Court in Kaduna, although the date for his formal arraignment before the court was not specified in the report.

The case centres on a document presented online as correspondence from Tinubu to the US president. Its circulation generated controversy over the authenticity of the purported presidential communication.

Onanuga said the DSS would continue to identify individuals involved in spreading what he described as misleading information online.

The prosecution has also drawn criticism from human rights activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, who questioned the agency’s involvement in the matter.

In a post on X on Tuesday, Sowore accused the DSS of being used to suppress dissent and criticised the decision to prosecute a citizen over an online post.