Sixty-nine people arrested in Nigeria for allegedly holding a gay wedding party have been granted bail and are to pay N500,000 each for their release, their lawyer said.
The individuals were paraded by the police in Delta state on Aug. 27. Police said they were arrested at Ekpan community in Uvwie local government area (LGA) of Delta during a same-sex wedding ceremony.
They were taken before a state high court on Sept. 4.
Nigeria has stringent anti-gay laws. The Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act, enacted in 2014, criminalizes same-sex marriage and public display of same-sex relationships. It punishes such acts with prison sentences of up to 14 years.
The law also punishes establishing, supporting, and participating in gay organizations with up to 10 years in prison.
The police used the law for the first time in 2019 to prosecute 47 men accused of same-sex public displays of affection in Lagos State. However, the case was dismissed by a court after the police failed to appear and present witnesses.
In December 2022, the Islamic police in Kano arrested 19 people accused of attending the wedding of a same-sex couple.
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The lawyer representing those arrested in Delta state, Ochuko Ohimor, told the News Agency of Nigeria that they were admitted to bail on Tuesday with the sum of N500,000 and two sureties each.
The sureties must reside within the Effurun jurisdiction of the court. He suspects are to also sign an undertaking at the State High Court of Justice, Effurun, in Uvwie LGA, where they were earlier arraigned on Sept. 4.
“The suspects were granted bail at a cost of N500,000 and two sureties each. The sureties must reside within the Effurun jurisdiction,” Ohimor told NAN.
Police prosecutor, Vincent Orarumen, had opposed the bail condition but their lawyer argued otherwise, saying that the alleged crime was not a capital offence.
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