BREAKING: Police Arrest INEC Official Over Voter Data Leak Scandal, Grill Wike’s Aide Lere Olayinka
The Nigeria Police Force has launched a full-scale investigation into the alleged unauthorised access and leakage of sensitive voter information from the database of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), leading to the arrest of a staff member of the electoral body and the interrogation of a media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, Lere Olayinka.
Senior police sources confirmed on Wednesday that operatives of the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) are handling the probe, which centres on alleged cyber-related offences, database misuse, and the unlawful release of confidential electoral documents.
As part of the ongoing investigation, an INEC electoral officer whose identity has not been disclosed has been taken into custody.
Meanwhile, Lere Olayinka was reportedly invited and questioned on Tuesday at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
The investigation followed a petition said to have been submitted on behalf of INEC, accusing individuals of criminal conspiracy, cyber harassment, and the unauthorised dissemination of classified electoral records.
The controversy began after Olayinka shared screenshots on social media allegedly showing details of a voter registration transfer linked to Nollywood actor and politician Emeka Ike, moving his registration from Imo State to the Federal Capital Territory.
The post, which surfaced amid debates over Ike’s eligibility to contest for a House of Representatives seat in the FCT following his criticism of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) primary process, triggered widespread public attention and scrutiny.
Many Nigerians raised concerns over how such sensitive voter information was accessed, suggesting it could only have come from INEC’s restricted internal database.
INEC, however, responded on Tuesday, denying any hacking incident involving its Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) system.
The commission stated that the incident was not a breach but rather an alleged abuse of authorised access by an insider.
Preliminary findings reportedly show that the detained INEC officer initiated contact with Olayinka via Facebook Messenger and later forwarded voter registration documents through WhatsApp.
The documents were said to have been shared to demonstrate that Emeka Ike’s voter transfer request had been initiated but was yet to receive final approval.
During interrogation, Olayinka reportedly told investigators that he had no prior dealings with the INEC official and was unaware that the materials shared were classified.
Sources added that he maintained the officer did not indicate that the information was confidential or restricted.
Meanwhile, the Department of State Services (DSS) has also commenced a parallel investigation into the circumstances surrounding the alleged leak.
Security authorities are reportedly considering possible charges against both the INEC official and Olayinka, including criminal conspiracy, cyber-related offences, unlawful disclosure of classified information, and actions capable of disturbing public peace.
