A member of the legal team representing Nnamdi Kanu has dismissed circulating claims that the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) was stabbed inside the Sokoto Custodial Centre, describing the reports as false and misleading.
Speaking on the matter, Maxwell Opara, one of Kanu’s lawyers, said there was no attack on his client and no incident suggesting a breach of security at the facility where the separatist leader is currently held.
“Let me be very clear, nobody stabbed Nnamdi Kanu and nobody assaulted him in Sokoto,” Opara said. “He is alive, stable, and under the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service.”
Kanu is serving a life sentence following his conviction by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
After the judgment, prison authorities transferred him from Abuja to the Sokoto Custodial Centre to begin his sentence.
Rumours of an alleged stabbing spread online in recent days, prompting concerns among supporters and renewed debate over Kanu’s safety in detention.
However, Opara insisted that the claims had no factual basis and urged the public to rely on verified information.
The lawyer also addressed questions surrounding a recent decision of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which struck out an application seeking Kanu’s transfer to Kuje Correctional Centre.
According to Opara, the appeal was dismissed because it had become irrelevant following Kanu’s conviction.
“That case was filed years ago when he was still in the custody of the DSS and needed regular medical access,” he explained.
“Once the conviction was entered, the court held that the matter was no longer live.”
Further clarifying why Kanu is being held in Sokoto, Opara said the decision was not arbitrary but flowed directly from the trial court’s orders.
“The judgment directing his remand specifically mentioned a protective custodial facility, and Sokoto was clearly named,” he said.
“That was why the correctional authorities acted the way they did.”
He added that efforts were made to understand whether Sokoto was considered more secure than Abuja, but officials confirmed they were simply complying with the wording of the court’s remand warrant.
Despite the controversy, Opara maintained that legal steps were ongoing to challenge aspects of Kanu’s conviction and detention, while also calling on supporters to avoid panic driven by unverified reports.
“This case is now firmly within the judicial process,” he said. “Speculation only distracts from the serious legal issues still before the courts.”