By Deborah Nnamdi
The Nigeria Police Force has launched an investigation into the alleged unauthorised access and disclosure of sensitive voter information from the database of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), leading to the arrest of an electoral officer and the questioning of a media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Senior police sources confirmed on Wednesday that operatives of the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) are investigating allegations of database misuse, cyber-related offences, and the unlawful release of classified electoral records belonging to INEC.
As part of the ongoing probe, an INEC electoral officer, whose identity has not been made public, has been taken into custody, while Lere Olayinka, media aide to the FCT Minister, was interrogated by investigators at the Police Headquarters in Abuja.
The investigation reportedly stemmed from a petition filed on behalf of INEC, alleging criminal conspiracy, cyber intimidation, and the unauthorised disclosure of sensitive electoral documents.
The controversy emerged after Olayinka shared screenshots on social media purportedly showing details of a voter registration transfer involving Nollywood actor and politician Emeka Ike from Imo State to the Federal Capital Territory.
The post surfaced amid debates over Ike’s eligibility to contest a House of Representatives seat in the FCT following his criticism of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) primary election process. The disclosure sparked widespread public reactions, with many Nigerians questioning how the information was obtained and suggesting that it could only have originated from INEC’s restricted voter registration database.
Responding to the incident, INEC on Tuesday denied reports that its Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) database had been hacked or compromised. The commission maintained that the information was exposed through the misuse of valid internal access credentials by an authorised official.
Investigators reportedly discovered that the detained electoral officer initiated contact with Olayinka through Facebook Messenger before forwarding voter registration documents to him via WhatsApp. The documents were said to have been intended to show that Emeka Ike’s voter transfer request had recently been initiated and was yet to receive final approval.
During questioning, Olayinka reportedly told investigators that he had no prior relationship with the INEC official and was unaware that the documents shared with him were classified. Sources said he insisted that the electoral officer never indicated that the information was confidential or restricted.
Meanwhile, the Department of State Services (DSS) has commenced a parallel investigation into the circumstances surrounding the disclosure of the voter records.
Police authorities are said to be considering possible charges against both the INEC official and Olayinka, including criminal conspiracy, cyber-related offences, unlawful disclosure of classified information, and conduct capable of causing a breach of public peace.
The investigations by both security agencies are ongoing.
