A Magistrate Court sitting in Wuse Zone 2, Abuja, has struck out a criminal suit bordering on alleged criminal defamation and cyberbullying filed by the Nigerian police on behalf of the Minister of Works, David Umahi, against businesswoman, Tracyniter Nicholas Ohiri.
The development followed an application by the police prosecutor, Wisdom Patrick, seeking to discontinue and withdraw the case.
Tracyniter was granted bail on February 26, 2026, in the sum of N1million with two sureties in like sum after she publicly accused Umahi of allegedly refusing to pay for goods and services she supplied to him.
She had also accused the minister of unlawfully detaining her and allegedly using senior police officers to harass and intimidate her after she rejected his alleged advances.
At the resumed hearing on Tuesday before His Worship Ibraheem Ope, the prosecution counsel informed the court of an application to discontinue the matter which he said was in pursuant to Section 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015.
“This application is filed and dated the 24th day of March, 2026. It is brought pursuant to Section 108, and by this application we wish to discontinue the case,” Patrick told the court.
The defence counsel, A.K. Musa, informed the court that the defendant was bereaved and therefore unable to attend proceedings. He added that a formal letter had been submitted to notify the court of the development, and the letter was admitted in evidence.
In his ruling, Magistrate Ope granted the prosecution’s application, struck out the case and discharged the defendant as well as the two sureties.
Speaking with journalists after the proceedings, human rights activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, said the matter before the magistrate court involved criminal allegations of cybercrime and criminal defamation brought against Tracyniter by the police on behalf of Umahi.
According to Sowore, Tracyniter’s absence from court was due to bereavement, which was communicated to the court by her new legal team.
He further disclosed that the prosecution subsequently moved a motion to discontinue the case, which he described as having been improperly filed before a magistrate court despite involving cybercrime-related allegations.
“You know how the police always play their games. When they want to detain somebody indefinitely, they will go to the wrong forum to obtain detention or remand orders that are then used to punish people in advance for the crime they claim they committed,” Sowore said.
He added that following the withdrawal of the charges, the magistrate struck out the case and discharged all sureties, including himself.
“The case has been struck out by the magistrate here, and all the sureties in the case have been discharged. I’m one of the sureties, so I’m no longer a surety to Tracy in this matter because the case no longer exists,” he stated.
Meanwhile, our correspondent gathered that a related matter had been filed before a Federal High Court and may come up for hearing soon.
Reacting to the development, Sowore said the dispute between Umahi and Tracyniter had already been resolved.
“Our position is that the Minister has settled the case between him and Tracy. So, there is no basis for any other criminal charges over the matter,” he said.
Also speaking, Tracyniter’s lawyer, A.K. Musa, questioned the continued pursuit of related charges in another court despite reports that the matter had been amicably resolved.
“The law allows for alternative means of settlement, and having explored that alternative means, it is inappropriate to continue to pursue any Nigerian citizen,” Musa stated.
The lawyer also alleged that the initial filing before the magistrate court was intended to secure a remand order to keep the defendant in detention.
“They knew the appropriate court to approach, but they only came before this court because they wanted to obtain a remand warrant to keep her unduly in prison,” he alleged.
