LAGOS — Comfort Bob, the Ibom Air passenger, who caused a stir at the Murtala Muhammad Airport in Lagos on Sunday, appears to have begun a new life inside the female wing of Kirikiri Prison, as she was ushered in at about 6.30 pm on Monday by police officers from the Airport Command, Ikeja, with a remand order which lapses October 6.
However, the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, yesterday condemned as reckless and unlawful, the treatment of the passenger who had sensitive parts of her body exposed in a viral video.
The NBA also disagreed with Airline Operators of Nigeria, AON, over the indefinite ‘no fly’ ban slammed on the passenger, just as the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, replied those drawing similarity between the ValueJet incident which involved musician, Wasiu Ayinde, also known as Kwam 1, and that of the Ibom Air passenger, saying both incidents were not same.
A source within the prison, who told Vanguard yesterday that Comfort Bob was brought into the Female Prisons, Kirikiri, with a remand order, disclosed that the 26-year-old student was calm and did not betray any emotion and was promptly processed as a first time offender.
The source said: “When she was brought in yesterday (Monday), she was classified as a first time offender and kept separate from other inmates. She didn’t really show any emotions here but she came with her luggage.
“Since she is not a government official and also not a well-known individual, she did not qualify as a very important person. She might have been known for the fracas at the airport, but our classification here doesn’t qualify her as a VIP.
“During her admission process handled by our senior official, she was briefed on the rules and regulations of the female prison. She was also given an option of skills available in the prison that she can learn.
“We have schools and vocational training here. Even if someone is staying for just a week or a month, they don’t remain idle in a cell — they are encouraged to learn something.