May Edochie, the estranged wife of Nollywood actor Yul Edochie, has commenced legal action at the Lagos State High Court against her former lawyer, Emeka Ugwuonye, and Yinka Omolola Theisen, the former partner of Linc Edochie, over alleged cyberbullying, defamation and online harassment.
The lawsuit also includes several unidentified individuals accused of operating anonymous social media accounts allegedly used to spread defamatory content against her over a prolonged period.
According to court documents, May is asking the court to order the removal of the social media accounts and posts she claims were created to tarnish her reputation and subject her to public ridicule.
She is also seeking an order directing major social media companies to release the identities and relevant details of the operators of the anonymous accounts to support ongoing investigations into the alleged online attacks.
In an affidavit containing 126 paragraphs, May alleged that she has been the target of a coordinated campaign of harassment spanning several years across Facebook pages and online blogs.
She claimed the publications contained false allegations, altered photographs, offensive illustrations, artificial intelligence-generated images and messages expressing death wishes, all of which she said were intended to damage her image and reputation.
May further accused her former legal counsel, Emeka Ugwuonye, of violating attorney-client confidentiality by allegedly revealing information obtained during the course of representing her. She also alleged that he published false and defamatory content about her on social media.
The court filings stated that her current legal team had earlier issued cease-and-desist letters demanding the removal of the disputed content, public apologies and retractions. However, May alleged that the publications continued, with additional social media accounts allegedly created to sustain the attacks.
Justice Abdul-Raheem Tejumade Muyideen, who is presiding over the matter, has ordered that all court documents be served on the defendants through every available communication channel. The case was subsequently adjourned to allow for the filing of a report confirming that the court processes have been served.
