Detectives from the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team have interrogated the Senior Special Assistant on Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Lere Olayinka, while also detaining an Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) official over allegations relating to the unauthorised release of a voter’s registration record.
Police sources, who spoke anonymously, said the investigation stemmed from a petition alleging cyber-related offences and the unlawful disclosure of confidential personal data belonging to Nollywood actor Emeka Ike.
According to the sources, the detained INEC official, an electoral officer in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), is being investigated for allegedly sharing sensitive voter registration information during a political dispute linked to a party primary election.
One of the sources said:
“We have had the Electoral Officer for the Abuja Municipal Area Council in our custody since yesterday.
Also, Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Assistant on Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, was invited and questioned over the Emeka Ike matter.
A top security aide to the INEC chairman petitioned the police over allegations of criminal conspiracy, cyber intimidation, the leaking of classified documents, and conduct likely to breach public peace, all of which are connected to the Emeka Ike case.”
The source explained that the incident allegedly began on May 29, 2026, when protesters stormed the INEC office in AMAC, accusing officials of irregularities during a party primary election.
It was further alleged that after the protest, the electoral officer accessed Emeka Ike’s registration details through the INEC system and instructed a subordinate to capture a screenshot of the actor’s voter enrolment information.
Another source claimed the data was later shared after contact was established between the electoral officer and Olayinka via Facebook Messenger, with their conversation subsequently moving to WhatsApp.
“The leak occurred on May 29, 2026, when a group of political actors spearheading a protest under a political party banner blocked the exit gate of the INEC AMAC office with vehicles, behaving aggressively and alleging irregularities in an ongoing primary election.
Following the hostility, the AMAC Electoral Officer discovered through administrative channels that one of the primary actors leading the aggressive protest, identified as Emeka Ike, a popular Nollywood actor, had only recently initiated a voters’ registration transfer from Imo State, an application that had not even been officially approved by the commission.
Angered by the blockade of his office, the Electoral Officer, instead of following official protocols, instructed a subordinate staff member under him to capture a screenshot of the applicant’s confidential data directly from the INEC Voter Enrolment Device.
The Electoral Officer subsequently spoke with the FCT minister’s spokesman on Facebook Messenger. They moved on to chat on WhatsApp, where the classified voter registration document was sent to Wike’s aide,” the source alleged.
A separate source said Olayinka, in his statement, admitted sharing protest videos online but maintained that he was initially contacted by the electoral officer, who complained about criticism directed at INEC.
“In his statement, Olayinka admitted that he had posted a video of the political protest at the AMAC office on his social media pages.
He explained that the AMAC Electoral Officer, whom he did not previously know, contacted him via Facebook Messenger to vent his anger that INEC was being blackmailed by protesters who were not even validly registered voters in the FCT.
Olayinka admitted that the INEC official promised to send proof of the temporary voter’s card, which was subsequently delivered via WhatsApp.”
The police investigation is said to be ongoing.
