Lagos Court fines VeryDarkMan ₦200,000, orders defense in Falana’s ₦1bn defamation suit

A Lagos High Court in Ikeja has ordered social media influencer Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), to pay ₦200,000 in legal costs after rejecting his preliminary objection to a ₦1 billion defamation lawsuit.

The suit was filed by prominent human rights lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) and his son, musician Folarin Falana, also known as Falz.

The court, presided over by Justice Fimisola Azeez, ruled that VDM’s objections were without merit.

The judge awarded ₦100,000 each to Femi and Folarin Falana and instructed the defendant to immediately file his defense in both suits.

“The court, presided over by Justice Fimisola Azeez, found VDM’s objections to be without merit. The judge awarded ₦100,000 each to Femi and Folarin Falana and instructed the defendant to immediately file his Defence in both suits.”

The lawsuit stems from a video posted by VDM on his Instagram account (@verydarkblackman) on September 24, 2024, which the Falana family claims contained defamatory and damaging statements to their reputations. Each plaintiff is seeking ₦500 million in damages, totaling ₦1 billion.

During the hearing, Femi Falana was represented by his legal team, Ernest Olawanle and Femi Akinyemi, while Falz was present in court. VDM was absent but represented by his lawyer, Marvin Omorogbe.

The claimants allege that the video contained libelous and scandalous statements targeting them and are asking the court to:

• Declare the publication defamatory.
• Issue a perpetual injunction restraining VDM and his associates from making or disseminating similar content.
• Compel VDM to issue a public apology on all his social media platforms as well as in a national newspaper.

In his defense, VDM had filed a preliminary objection, arguing that the Lagos High Court lacked jurisdiction because the alleged offenses occurred outside its legal boundary. However, the claimants submitted a counter-affidavit and written argument urging the court to dismiss the objection.

Justice Azeez sided with the Falanas, striking out VDM’s objection, and ordered him to respond to the core defamation allegations.

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The case has been adjourned to July 8 for mention and to allow the defendant time to submit his statement of defense.

This ruling follows an earlier development in April when Justice Mathias Dawodu of another Lagos High Court struck out a related pre-emptive suit filed by the Falanas.

Justice Dawodu ruled the matter had become academic, as the substantive defamation case was already pending before Justice Azeez.

The pre-emptive order, granted on October 14, 2024, had led to the filing of the main suit.

In response, VDM filed another objection, citing a duplication of proceedings and requesting a stay.

However, Justice Dawodu dismissed it, noting that the pre-emptive matter had expired and continuing it would waste judicial resources.

The legal battle now proceeds under Justice Azeez, with VDM required to formally respond to the defamation claims.