Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) arrested journalist Edna Ulaeto of OrderPaper during a raid on her home on Friday.
According to a statement by OrderPaper management, the DSS officers, armed and masked, stormed Ms Ulaeto’s residence, mistreating her and taking her to an undisclosed location.
The statement revealed that neighbours who attempted to intervene or document the event were pushed aside, with some being forced to delete their photos and videos under threat of arrest.
“The young lady, still dressed in her casual nightwear, was violently manhandled and forcibly taken away to an unknown destination, leaving her family and neighbours in shock and fear,” the statement said.
OrderPaper claimed that Ms Ulaeto’s phone number had been unlawfully tracked, and her arrest is reportedly linked to a recent article that mistakenly reported a DSS operation at the National Assembly. The article alleged that the operation aimed to prevent the removal of Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Despite the newspaper’s retraction and public apology, the newspaper said the DSS proceeded with the arrest, leaving Ms Ulaeto’s family and colleagues in shock and fear.
The organization has called on civil society and the international community to demand Ms Ulaeto’s immediate release and condemn the action as an attack on press freedom and human rights.