Popular Nigerian rapper and activist, Folarin Falana, known as Falz, has confirmed that he had contact with controversial social media personality Idris Okuneye, widely known as Bobrisky, regarding legal issues Bobrisky faced earlier this year. However, Falz strongly refuted claims that he offered financial assistance or conspired to influence the legal process.
This development comes after Falana’s legal firm, Falana & Falana Chambers, issued a letter to social media figure Martins Vincent Otse, also known as VeryDarkMan, demanding a public retraction of defamatory statements made against Falz. The letter addressed a post on Instagram where VeryDarkMan implied that Falz had conspired with Bobrisky to “pervert the course of justice” by financially supporting him in his legal battles.
The letter, dated September 26, 2024, was signed by Falz’s lawyer, Taiwo E. Olawanle, and detailed the sequence of events. It confirmed that Bobrisky contacted Falz in May, seeking both advice and a request for N3 million to allegedly secure a VIP section at the Correctional Centre. Falz, however, declined to offer financial aid and discouraged Bobrisky from making any payments to officials.
The letter read: “Your publication of September 25, 2024, on your Instagram page, captioned ‘In everything and everyone that is mentioned here, I will be disappointed if truly FALZ and his father are involved in this whole Bobrisky issue…’ has been drawn to our notice wherein you made defamatory statements against our client.”
It went on to clarify that Falz did not initiate any conversation with Bobrisky but was instead approached by the social media influencer seeking advice. The letter added that Bobrisky claimed to be in distress and requested N3 million to bribe officials for preferential treatment at the Correctional Centre, a request Falz outrightly rejected.
The letter further stated, “Our client advised him that there was no need to pay the officials of the Correctional Centre any money. However, Mr Idris Okuneye insisted on his request for the money, which our client continuously disapproved.”
Falz’s legal team has demanded a full retraction of the defamatory statements and a public apology from VeryDarkMan, warning that failure to comply within 24 hours would lead to legal action, including a claim for damages to repair Falz’s tarnished reputation.
Meanwhile, a viral video shared by VeryDarkMan revealed Bobrisky’s allegations that unnamed EFCC officers had taken N15 million to drop money laundering charges against him. Bobrisky has since denied the bribery allegations, and EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede has ordered an investigation into the claims.
