Fact Check - Is This a Recent Video of Nnamdi Kanu Leaving Court?

By Nyakerario Omari

On November 27, 2021, this tweet containing a video from Facebook, claimed to show the release of Indigenous People of Biafra’s (IPOB) leader, Nnamdi Kanu. Similarly, on November 26, 2021, another tweet reposted the same video from YouTube.

Background

Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of IPOB, a separatist group in Nigeria was arrested on June 27, 2021 and presented before the court on June 29, 2021. According to Africa News, Nnamdi was accused of treason, terrorism, running an illegal company, publishing defamatory content and being in possession of firearms. He pleaded not guilty at his last court hearing.

Verification

Reverse image searches show screenshots from this video were shared as early as April 28, 2017. According to Channels TV, Nnamdi Kanu was released from Kuje Prison, after an 18-month sentence.

From this video, Channels TV’s logo can be identified on the top left. With this, a Google Advanced Search shows the same video was shared on Youtube by Channels TV on April 29, 2017. A Twitter advanced search reveals the same.

Reports still indicate that Nnamdi is in trial with his next hearing being in January 2022.

Verdict

Posts claiming to show a video of Nnamdi Kanu’s recent release are FALSE.

This story was produced by Africa Uncensored in partnership with Code for Africa with support from Deutsche Welle Akademie.