The family of Kingsley Akunemeihe, an 18-year-old UTME candidate, has appealed to billionaire businessman Tony Elumelu to forgive him following his arrest over a viral social media post falsely claiming the banker had divorced his wife.
Gatekeepers News reports that in a video shared on Sunday via Instagram, the suspect’s sister, Ngozi Akunemeihe, said Kingsley was apprehended after reposting a claim on X (formerly Twitter) alleging that Elumelu had separated from his wife, Awele.
She explained that the teenager was arrested on April 18 while returning home after sitting for his JAMB examination and has remained in detention since then.
“Mr Tony Elumelu got the police to arrest my 18-year-old younger brother, Kingsley Chinanu Akunemeihe. He was arrested on Saturday, 18 April. He was coming back from his JAMB exam when he was arrested and never got home,” she said.
Ngozi clarified that the controversial post was not originally authored by her brother but was copied from another user and shared onward.
“He said he got it from another person’s handle and shared it with others. After sharing it, people called his attention that the post is fake and defamatory,” she said.
According to her, Kingsley later realised the claim was false, deleted the post, and issued a public apology.
“He acknowledged he did something wrong and apologised for it. His apology posts are still there on his handle,” she added.
Despite this, she said he was arrested about ten days later and has been held at the State Criminal Investigation Department for over a week.
“He has been detained for over a week now,” she said.
In an emotional plea, she urged Elumelu to consider the teenager’s age and remorse, asking for compassion.
“I am begging you sir, please forgive him. He is just 18. I know people may say he is an adult, but he is still a teenager who acted out of ignorance,” she said.
She further appealed for his release, noting that the experience had already served as a lesson.
“He realised that what he did was not okay and he has apologised. I am begging you to withdraw the complaint so that he can come back home,” she added.
The incident is part of a broader controversy surrounding the spread of a false divorce claim involving Elumelu and his wife. United Bank for Africa (UBA), where Elumelu serves as chairman, had earlier dismissed the report as “false, defamatory, and malicious.”
In its statement, the bank said: “The attention of UBA Group has been drawn to a false, defamatory, and malicious publication currently circulating on social media platforms, falsely alleging that the Group Chairman, Mr Tony O. Elumelu, CFR, has divorced his wife.”
UBA confirmed that arrests had been made, stating: “We confirm that three individuals directly connected to the creation and dissemination of these malicious falsehoods have been arrested.”
The development has sparked wider debate on social media around free speech, defamation, and the role of law enforcement in handling online content. Human rights activist Omoyele Sowore has also called on the Nigeria Police Force to release those detained, arguing that the matter should be treated as a civil issue rather than a criminal offence.
