Three youths arrested in Shani Local Government Area of Borno State over a Facebook post on the council’s N3.11 billion Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) receipts have been released.
The youths; Salihu Yahaya, Haruna Mohammed and Muhammed Mallum, were released at about 2am on Saturday, according to sources close to them.
Their release came about seven hours after Daily Trust published a report on Friday night detailing their alleged arrest and detention by the police over the Facebook post.
The youths were reportedly arrested at the instance of the chairman of Shani Local Government Area, Hassan Abdu Labaki, after sharing a post showing that the council received N3.11 billion in FAAC allocations between January and June 2026.
Sources said the three men were initially detained at the Shani Police Division and had been threatened with possible transfer to the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) or the Department of State Services (DSS) in Maiduguri.
However, following the publication of the Daily Trust report, the youths were released in the early hours of Saturday, the sources said.
One of the sources, who confirmed their release to Daily Trust, said the youths were freed without being taken to Maiduguri.
“They were released around 2am. They are now back home,” the source said.
Another source said the youths were relieved to regain their freedom after spending several hours in police custody.
The source, however, said it was unclear whether any formal charges had been filed against them.
The arrests had generated concern among youths in the area, with several residents using social media to call for their release.
The affected youths were said to have only shared or posted information about the local government’s FAAC receipts, without adding any allegation against the council chairman or other officials.
The figures contained in the Facebook post were based on monthly FAAC disbursement reports issued by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF).
An analysis by Daily Trust showed that Shani LGA received N3,110,132,578.97 between January and June 2026.
The allocation comprised statutory allocation, Value Added Tax (VAT), ecology funds and other components, including augmentation, Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) and solid mineral revenue.
The highest monthly allocation during the period was N551.90 million received in May, while the lowest was N474.92 million received in March.
Daily Trust had earlier reported how efforts to reach the Chairman of Shani Local Government Area for his reaction to the arrests proved unsuccessful, as calls and text messages sent to him were not responded to as of press time.
The police authorities in Borno State also could not be reached for their reaction to the arrests or the reasons for the detention.
As of Saturday morning, there was no official statement from the council or the police explaining the circumstances surrounding the arrest and subsequent release of the three youths.
The development has renewed calls among residents for public officials to respond to questions over public funds and to use established channels to correct disputed information rather than resorting to the arrest of citizens.
The three youths could not immediately be reached for detailed comments on their release as a source close to them disclosed that their phones were still in police custody because as at the time of their release, the officer holding their phone was not around.
