Lagos asks police to probe domestic violence claim against influencer, SirJarus

The Lagos Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency has reported that an allegation of abuse involving a popular online influencer, Suraj Oyewale, widely recognised as #SirJarus, has been referred for investigation.

The agency noted that Sir Jarus addressed the issue through a series of tweets, providing clarification on the incident involving him and his wife, Mrs Oyewale Ayoola.

In the now-deleted tweets, Oyewale alleged that his wife engaged in fetish practices and provocative behaviour, which he claimed led to a physical altercation.

These statements have ignited outrage on social media, particularly on X.com, where users have expressed a wide range of opinions on the matter.

He further indicated in his responses to critics that his 14-year marriage might be nearing its end.

This situation appears to be related to his recent decision to take a second wife.

But Lagos DSVA, in a post on its X account on Friday, said, “Our attention has been drawn to a tweet made by @SirJarus.

“As the statutory agency in Lagos State dedicated to preventing and responding to domestic and sexual violence, we take this very seriously.

“Domestic violence in any form is unacceptable, and the Lagos State Government maintains a zero-tolerance stance against it.”

A suit dated June 27, 2024, has also surfaced online (posted by Jarus himself), revealing that Oyewale’s lawyer, Muhammad Adam of Muhammad Adam and Associates, has formally communicated Oyewale’s intent to dissolve his marriage to the wife.

The suit specifies that abandoning Islam and consulting soothsayers and herbalists were established as deal breakers prior to their marriage in 2011.

Additionally, Oyewale is seeking full custody of their three children.

The suit stated, “We shall continue to communicate with you on the progress of the matrimonial proceedings.”

PUNCH Online, however, has been unable to confirm the receipt of the notification from either party, as attempts to reach the couple were unsuccessful as of press time.

Meanwhile, the Head of Public Affairs Unit, Lagos DSVA, Adejoke Ladenegan-Oginni noted in the statement that it has referred the case to the Lagos State Police Command for further investigation.

The statement read further, “We have, as an agency referred this to the Commissioner of Police (Gender Desk Department) to ensure that investigation commences.

“We appreciate everyone who tagged us and brought this to our attention.”

Jarus is the founder of JarusHub and many other start-ups.

JarusHub is Nigeria’s number one online career resources destination and one of Africa’s leading online career portals.

PUNCH Online reports that phone calls made to the Lagos Police Command’s spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin didn’t go through and text messages sent to him were unresponded to as of press time.