Nigeria’s Department of State Services has taken over the investigation into the attack on media executive Don Pedro Obaseki following allegations that the incident was linked to remarks about the Benin monarchy, his lawyer said.
Obaseki was attacked on Dec. 28, 2025, after he was allegedly forced away from a football game with friends, paraded through the streets and taken to the palace of the Benin monarch before being handed over to police. He was later released.
In a statement made available to journalists in Benin City, Obaseki’s lawyer, Femi Falana, said the DSS had formally assumed responsibility for the investigation.
Falana said the legal team has also filed civil suits in Nigerian courts and submitted petitions to international and regional bodies, including the ECOWAS Court of Justice, European Union human rights mechanisms and the United Nations special rapporteur on torture and arbitrary detention.
According to Falana, Obaseki has engaged with DSS officials in Benin City under the supervision of the agency’s state director, and any concerns about the conduct of those interactions have been formally documented and submitted to relevant authorities.
Falana described the attack as an act of terrorism and said petitions submitted to security and oversight agencies allege conspiracy, unlawful detention, assault and obstruction of justice.
“The DSS headquarters in Abuja has been formally petitioned,” Falana said. “The service has now assumed conduct of the investigation and has agreed to treat the complaint as terrorism-related in view of the gravity of the incident.”
He said Obaseki welcomed the development and continues to cooperate with investigators.
Falana added that additional petitions had been sent to international and regional institutions, including the European Union human rights commission, the ECOWAS court and the U.N. special rapporteur, citing concerns over human rights violations and the need for accountability.
The DSS has not publicly commented on the matter.
