A Nigerian woman could face up to seven years in prison for posting a negative review of a tomato puree can, following accusations from the manufacturer that her comments harmed their business.
Chioma Okoli, a 39-year-old entrepreneur from Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city, faces criminal prosecution and a civil lawsuit after criticizing a product by Nigerian food company Erisco Foods.
She urged her 18,000 Facebook followers to share their opinions on Erisco’s Nagiko Tomato Mix, posting a photo of the opened can and commenting on its excessive sweetness.
One commenter said: ‘Stop spoiling my brother’s product. If [you] don’t like it, use another one than bring it to social media or call the customer service.’
Okoli responded: ‘Help me advise your brother to stop ki***ing people with his product, yesterday was my first time of using and it’s pure sugar.’
Chioma Okoli (pictured) is being criminally prosecuted and sued in a civil court after she made negative comments about a product made by Nigerian foodmaker Erisco Foods
The businesswoman, who’s currently pregnant with her fourth child, was arrested by plainclothes officers from Nigeria’s national police in September while she was in church, and told CNN that she was made to stand around in a leaky cell for hours.
‘There were no seats, so I stood all through till the next day. My legs were inside the water [that came in from the leaking roof]’, she said.
‘Sometimes, I squatted to reduce the pressure on my legs. I was thinking about my children who were at home. I was talking to myself. I would think, I would pray, I was messed up,’ she added.
Okoli was criminally charged with two separate crimes, the most serious of which could land her behind bars for up to seven years.
She was charged with conspiring with two other individuals with ‘the intention of instigating people against Erisco Foods Limited’, and may have to go to prison for up to seven years.
Okoli was also charged with ‘instigating Erisco Foods Limited, knowing the said information to be false’, a crime that could end with her going to prison for three years, having to pay a fine of seven million naira (£3,950).
