THE Department of State Services (DSS) has confirmed the arrest and subsequent release of Dr Martin Aghaji, the medical expert who examined detained Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader Nnamdi Kanu, while firmly dismissing claims that the operation was connected to Kanu or the separatist group.
Dr Aghaji, a retired professor of medicine, was arrested at his residence in Enugu State on Friday before being granted administrative bail on Sunday. His detention initially sparked widespread controversy after Kanu’s lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor, alleged that the physician was targeted over an independent health report he had prepared on the IPOB leader – a report that reportedly contradicted an earlier medical assessment conducted by the DSS.
“This is the height of the official harassment he has been facing since he issued the medical report that did not comport with the SSS’s medical report on Mazi Nnamdi Kanu,” Ejimakor wrote in a series of posts on his X account.
The lawyer further alleged that security operatives stormed Dr Aghaji’s residence at approximately 3:00 a.m., forced their way into the premises after damaging the gate, fired gunshots during the operation and later transported him to Lagos.
DSS Spokesperson Responds
However, reacting to the allegations on Monday, DSS spokesperson Favour Dozie categorically dismissed suggestions that the arrest was linked to Kanu or IPOB activities.
“He was arrested, but not in connection with Nnamdi Kanu,” Dozie stated.
Whilst declining to provide further details, citing ongoing investigations, the DSS spokesperson maintained that claims linking the arrest to the detained separatist leader were unfounded. She also confirmed that Dr Aghaji was granted administrative bail on Sunday after providing a suitable surety and was released into the custody of the leadership of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) in Lagos.
Earlier, Ejimakor had announced the doctor’s release, crediting the intervention of the Nigeria Medical Association and other professional bodies for securing his freedom.
Senior Official Cites Financial Investigations
Meanwhile, a senior DSS official, speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to address the media, disclosed that Dr Aghaji’s arrest was connected to alleged financial transactions involving individuals described as high-profile criminal suspects currently under investigation.
According to the official, investigators confronted the medical expert with details of the transactions during interrogation and maintained that the investigation had no connection whatsoever with Nnamdi Kanu or IPOB.
The DSS has yet to release further details regarding the nature of the alleged financial transactions or the identities of the suspects involved, saying invesqq1tigations are still ongoing.
