In Lagos, the Federal High Court has handed down a three-year prison sentence to Okoye Blessing Nwakaego, a TikTok user, for engaging in cyberstalking directed at Nollywood actress Eniola Badmus on the TikTok platform.
As reported by Thenationonline, Nwakaego was found guilty on two counts of cyberstalking, but the court took her remorse into account and provided an alternative option: she could pay a fine of N150,000 instead of serving time behind bars.
The charges outlined that Nwakaego, along with an accomplice named Chimabia (who is currently at large), conspired between December 2022 and July 2023 to commit this offense.
One of Nwakaego's viral TikTok videos included the statement: “Eniola Badmus is a Professional Pimp, she connects small small girls to Big Politicians all over Nigeria.”
They disseminated offensive and false content through TikTok, Gossipmill TV, remedy blog, and other social media platforms, using Nwakaego's mobile number, with the intent of causing annoyance, inconvenience, and harm to Eniola Badmus's reputation.
This case violated sections 24(1)(b)(2)(a)(c) and 27 of the Cybercrimes Act, 2015, and was prosecuted by Nosa Uhumwangho.
During the legal proceedings, Nwakaego admitted that she created the false video at the instigation of a male friend. He had shared a fabricated story about Eniola Badmus, which motivated her to produce the defamatory video.
For her actions, Nwakaego received N200,000 from her friend, who encouraged her to post the video on TikTok, drawing online viewership.