Nigerian social media personality Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), has reportedly been arrested by the Nigeria Police Force in Abuja.
The arrest occurred shortly after VDM publicly accused Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) of unauthorized deductions from his mother’s bank account.
VDM’s legal representative, Barrister Deji Adeyanju, confirmed the incident on Friday. According to Adeyanju, the influencer was detained by police officers stationed in Area 3, Abuja, following his vocal criticism of the bank on social media platforms.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Adeyanju condemned the arrest, stating:
“JUST IN: VDM arrested by the police at GTB. Spoke to them before he was arrested. This is absolutely unacceptable. Demanding accountability is not a crime.”
In a subsequent update, the lawyer revealed that VDM was taken into custody alongside a friend identified as C Park, while his mother, who was also at the bank, was not detained.
“They arrested VDM at GTB. He was arrested with his friend C Park but they left his mom alone,” Adeyanju added.
The confrontation with GTBank stemmed from what VDM described as recurring and unexplained deductions from his mother’s account. In a previous post, he shared that they had gone to a GTBank branch in Abuja to seek clarification and request an official bank statement to track the source and frequency of the debits.
“Myself and my mom just arrived at GTBank to get an explanation for the constant debit from her account by GTBank in the name of loan repayments that she never took,” VDM wrote online.
“In this year alone, see the number of times she has been debited with different amounts. We have requested her bank statements so we know when the debiting started.”
He also noted that bank staff at the branch were cooperative and appeared willing to help resolve the matter.
According to VDM, the unexplained transactions have occurred more than seven times this year, each labeled as loan repayment charges—despite his mother’s insistence that she never applied for any such loans.
The situation has drawn significant attention online, with many Nigerians expressing concern over customer protection in the country’s banking system. Critics have also raised alarms over the perceived suppression of freedom of expression, especially when citizens demand transparency and accountability from major institutions.
As of now, further details regarding the conditions of VDM’s detention and possible charges remain unclear.
