Reality TV star and former Big Brother Naija winner, Josephina Otabor, popularly known as Phyna, has threatened legal action against content creator and streamer Carter Efe over an alleged defamatory claim that they had a sexual relationship.
In a pre-action letter dated July 30, Phyna demanded that Carter Efe retract the statement and issue a public apology within seven days or risk a lawsuit seeking no less than N500 million in general, exemplary, and aggravated damages.
The letter, signed by Segun Ojienoh of Eko Solicitors & Advocates, accused Carter Efe, whose real name is Joseph Oderhohwo Efe, of making the allegation during a livestream on Twitch and X on July 25.
According to the legal team, Efe repeatedly said, “You slept with me,” during the broadcast, a statement they described as false, defamatory, and damaging to Phyna’s reputation.
The lawyers argued that the allegation had since been widely circulated across social media platforms, exposing the reality TV star to ridicule and public contempt.
“As you coldly calculated, the sinister statement has since been rebroadcast on numerous platforms and by handles which are legion, thereby escalating the untoward damage already visited on Phyna,” the letter stated.
The legal team further contended that the statement implied Phyna engaged in sexual relationships with influential social media personalities to secure appearances on livestreams, describing the insinuation as malicious and injurious to her character.
As part of its demands, the letter asked Carter Efe to retract the statement within seven days, issue a public undertaking not to make similar allegations in the future, and publish the retraction through the same livestream platforms where the remarks were made.
Although the lawyers said Phyna is not seeking monetary compensation at this stage, they warned that failure to comply with the demands would leave her with no option but to institute legal proceedings.
According to the letter, she would seek not less than N500 million in damages for what it described as the malicious defamation of her character.
As of the time of filing this report, Carter Efe had not publicly responded to the legal notice.
