Eight days after his arrest and detention for slapping a policeman, Afrobeat musician, Oluseun Anikulapo Kuti, popularly known Seun Kuti, on Tuesday night regained his freedom.
The news about his release was broken by the Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore who tweeted, “Just to announce that @RealSeunKuti has been released from @PoliceNG detention in Lagos. Hasta la victoria siempre!,” with an video of Seun rejoicing with his family.
Seun, the youngest son of Afrobeat legend, Fela Kuti was arrested on Monday, May 15 for allegedly assaulting a police operative on Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos.
Protesters had earlier on Tuesday, May 23 demanded the immediate release of Seun within 24 hours.
The protesters thronged the Chief Magistrate Court Yaba in Lagos, asking police to release Kuti from detention.
The protests were carried out under the auspices of the Youth Rights Campaign (YRC), AAC, Movement for African Emancipation (MAE), Pan-African Consciousness Renaissance (PACOR), Workers and Youth Solidarity Network (WYSN), Movement of the People (MOP) and allies.
They also displayed placards with inscriptions such as “#FreeSeunKutiCampaign,” “Independent Judiciary: Is it really independent,” End Police Brutality,” amongst others.
Recall that the police said they discovered suspicious items during a search of the home of the Afrobeat musician in Lagos State.
Lagos police spokesman, Benjamin Hundeyin had disclosed this in a tweet while responding to criticism on how police are handling the musician’s ongoing case of assault against a policeman.
“In the course of our investigation, we stumbled on certain suspicious things that needed to be proven/disproved beyond a reasonable doubt.
“We, therefore, applied for and duly got a search warrant from the court which we have executed. Investigation continues.
“No law restricts the police to investigate only the initial crime. World over, Police Departments stumble on other crimes while investigating an initial crime,” Hundeyin responded.
“We are duty bound to investigate them in line with our mandate of detecting and investigating crimes.”
Seun was seen in a viral video slapping a policeman after which the Inspector General of Police, IGP Alkali Baba Usman, according to a statement from police spokesman, CSP Muyiwa Adejobi ordered the arrest of the musician.
