DSS Releases Journalist Soyinka’s Passport, Blames Arrest on 'Mistaken Identity'

Some days after arresting Soyinka Adeyinka, the West African Editor of The Conversation Africa, the Department of State Services (DSS) has returned his seized passport.

It would be recalled that On August 25, Soyinka was detained by the Department of State Services (DSS) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, shortly after arriving from the UK.

His arrest led to outrage including interventions from the International Press Institute, which forced the DSS to release him, hours later. 

The DSS however seized his passport.

On Friday, Soyinka was accompanied by human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, to the DSS office in Ikoyi, Lagos to retrieve the passport.

Speaking on the development, Effiong said the secret police attributed the arrest of the journalist to “mistaken identity”.

This is not the first time the DSS would  clamp down on journalists.

There have been concerns over rising intent to gag the media under the Tinubu-led administration, with arrests by security agencies.