VDM’s Arrest: Campaign To Boycott GTB, Withdraw Savings Gains Ground In Nigeria
Hours after popular social media influencer, Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, was arrested by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), reportedly on the orders of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) over a protest on unauthorised deductions by the bank from customers’ accounts, many Nigerians are now closing their bank accounts and withdrawing their funds over the bank’s highhandedness.
OSUN DEFENDER earlier reported that VDM was arrested by the Nigerian police in Abuja on the orders of GTBank, following his public complaints about alleged unauthorised debits from his mother’s bank account.
The arrest was reportedly initiated after VDM complained about repeated debits from his mother’s account in the name of loan repayments.
Confirming the arrest to reporters on Friday, Deji Adeyanju, legal counsel for VeryDarkMan, said officers of the Nigeria Police Force apprehended his client at Area 3, Abuja.
Adeyanju said, “My client, VeryDarkMan, was arrested today in Abuja by the Nigerian police. His only offence was speaking out about suspicious and repeated debits from his mother’s GTBank account for loans she never took.”
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Earlier, VeryDarkMan took to his social media platforms to express his concerns about multiple deductions from his mother’s account.
In a post that has since gone viral, he revealed that they visited a GTBank branch in Abuja to demand an explanation and obtain a copy of her bank statement.
“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. In this year alone, see the amount of times she has been debited with different amounts,” he wrote.
“We have requested her bank statements so we know when the debiting started. So far, in this year alone, there have been more than seven debits on loan repayments. GTBank staff are cooperating—hopefully, we’ll know why they keep doing this.”
You will recall that OSUN DEFENDER reported the arrest and subsequent docking of four journalists on spurious charges ordered by the Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Segun Agbaje, but were later dismissed by the court in March 2025.
On April 14, the medium also reported how a customer of the financial institution, Ariyo Ahmed Adewale accused Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) of orchestrating his arrest after he staged a protest inside one of its Lagos branches over the alleged disappearance of funds from his account.
Reacting to the development on social media, some users of the bank expressed frustration over the development, pledging to close down their accounts and withdraw their savings from the bank.
Below are some of the reactions:
@WizardB4J said: “Withdraw your money from GTB until Dey free VDM”
@officialpac02 wrote: “Let do this every body should withdraw there money from that bank and me personally I’m not going back there.”
@manova_madeit said: “As Nigeria dey show us shegè we suppose don evacuate the country make the politicians feel the heat.”
@dunamisfotography’s post reads, “Lol, I stopped using GTB already when them wan kee me with unnecessary bills and bad network.”
Sodiq Yusuf is a trained media practitioner and journalist with considerable years of experience in print, broadcast, and digital journalism. His interests cover a wide range of causes in politics, governance, sports, community development, and good governance.
