The Federal Government has launched a formal investigation into claims that cross-dresser Bobrisky received preferential treatment while serving a six-month sentence for abusing naira banknotes.
Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, ordered the probe following public outrage and media reports suggesting that Bobrisky was treated differently from other inmates at the Kirikiri Maximum Custodial Centre in Lagos.
An independent investigative panel, chaired by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Magdalene Ajani, began sittings on Monday to examine allegations of corruption, abuse of power, torture, and inhumane treatment within the Nigerian Correctional Service.
The panel will review the circumstances surrounding Bobrisky’s detention, verify whether he served his full term, and determine if any privileges he enjoyed violated prison regulations. It will also assess broader issues in correctional facilities, identify human rights abuses, and recommend reforms to improve rehabilitation and reintegration.
Ajani has already ordered the relocation of inmates from the Abeokuta Correctional Facility over poor sanitary conditions and requested status reports from other detention centres.
The controversy traces back to September 2024, when several Kirikiri officers were suspended after allegations emerged that Bobrisky stayed in a private apartment in prison and that bribes were collected on his behalf.
Bobrisky was arrested in April 2024, pleaded guilty to four counts of currency abuse, and was subsequently sentenced. The panel is expected to submit its findings on the case within two weeks.