Security Operatives Re-arrest Bayelsa Publisher, Jones Abiri

A Bayelsa-based newspaper publisher, Jones Abiri was whisked away on Saturday by security personnel in plain cloth believed to be men of the Department of State Services (DSS).

Abiri was arrested at Ayabowei Plaza in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital.

Abiri was arrested at Ayabowei Plaza in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital.

It was gathered gathered that the men stormed the area with a white Hilux van and black SUV.

Abiri was reportedly discussing with his colleagues at the secretariat of the Bayelsa Independent Publishers Association, when he was rounded up by the heavily armed men.

A source, who spoke in confidence said: ”The armed men jumped out of the hilux van threatening to shoot Abiri if he moved, only to be forced into the Hilux van.

“They then zoomed off while the other vehicle closely followed behind. The guns they carried were similar to those of the secret service.”
 
Another source added: “The men jumped out of the vehicles in a gestapo fashion while he was chatting with his friends, said shouted ‘you are under arrest’.

‘While he was demanding to know his offence, he was forcefully pushed into a waiting vehicle at gunpoint. Currently, his whereabouts are unknown.”

In 2016, the DSS arrested Abiri, alleging that he was a militant leader.

The DSS claimed that Abiri, a publisher of the Weekly Source, was the leader of the Joint Niger Delta Liberation Force, which threatened to release missiles in the Niger Delta region.

He later regained freedom in 2018 following campaigns national and international human rights groups.