NAPTIP Threatens To Take Legal Action As Speed Darlington Fails To Honor Invitation

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) is considering legal action against Nigerian musician Speed Darlington, also known as Darlington Okoye, after he failed to show up for questioning at the agency’s headquarters in Abuja.

KanyiDaily recalls that NAPTIP had summoned Speed Darlington, over a disturbing Instagram livestream where he claimed to have had sex with a 15-year-old girl, sparked outrage and accusations of statutory rape.

According to a letter signed by NAPTIP’s Head of Cybercrime Response, Ngamaraju Mangzha, Speed Darlington was expected to appear at the agency’s Wuse Zone 5 office by 9 a.m. on Friday. However, by midday, he was still nowhere to be found.

One agency official, who spoke anonymously, confirmed that the singer had not contacted NAPTIP or given any reason for his absence.

“As of now, we are still waiting. If we don’t see him, we will take action based on the notice issued. The last paragraph is very clear,” one official told PUNCH.

Another NAPTIP staff member explained that after the video surfaced, members of the public began tagging both the agency and the Lagos State Government.

He said that since Lagos authorities couldn’t confirm the alleged incident happened within their jurisdiction, they referred the matter to NAPTIP, which operates nationally.

“We issued a statement summoning him to appear in our office today at 09:00 am. It is evening now and we are still waiting. Maybe he had a delayed flight. He has not communicated officially with us.

“Immediately he released that viral video, people started tagging us. They tagged the Lagos State Government. They called our Lagos zonal commander to say that they could not establish that the offence was committed in Lagos because they have jurisdiction only within Lagos.

“They now said they will refer the case to us because we have a national reach. They called our Lagos Commander, who gave them our email address here. So, they escalated the matter,” he stated.

NAPTIP’s spokesperson, Adekoye Vincent, said Director-General Binta Bello is personally monitoring the situation and views the case very seriously.

Vincent also noted that in a more recent video, Speed Darlington seemed to mock the situation, saying that if he had known people would react so strongly, he would have mentioned a 12-year-old instead.

“We are concerned. Our DG is seriously concerned. She’s monitoring the situation by the hour. Why? It’s an issue that borders on a minor, the human rights of the minor, and sexual abuse. Anything could have happened to that girl.

“He was not under duress. It was an admission. Look at what he released yesterday: a video saying that if he had known that this 15-year-old would generate this, he would have gone for a 12-year-old,” Adekoye explained.

When asked if the agency would arrest the singer, Vincent said, “His failure to appear will ensure that we know what to do within the law. It is clear. It may be prosecution or arrest, but whatever it is, we are very concerned.”

Meanwhile, Isaac Fayose, the brother of former Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose, said the girl mentioned in the video is planning to file a police report.

Amid growing pressure, Speed Darlington tried to downplay the incident, claiming it was just a marketing stunt to promote his music. But many critics weren’t convinced. They argued that making jokes about child sexual abuse is not only irresponsible but deeply damaging.

KanyiDaily recalls that Speed Darlington was previously exposed by a slay queen who he is making sexual advances toward her on social media.