Chabi Yayi, son of former Beninese president and current opposition figure Thomas Boni Yayi, was arrested early on Sunday at his home.
The ex-president’s son was detained a week after a foiled coup attempt in the country, although no reason was given for his arrest at the time of filing this report.
“We don’t know if it is linked to the events of last Sunday,” a member of the Democrats Party, the main opposition party led by Yayi, told local media.
Meanwhile, Thomas Boni Yayi condemned the abortive coup in a video address two days later.
Several arrests have taken place since the December 7 putsch attempt, including alleged participants, the former minister of defence, and key opposition figure Candide Azannai.
Azannai was placed in police custody for “conspiracy against the authority of the State and incitement to rebellion”.
Benin has also issued an international arrest warrant against pan-Africanist and anti-Western influencer Kemi Seba, who on Sunday responded defiantly in a video.
In a seven-minute statement, Seba said he had taken precautions following the issuance of the warrant against him, though he did not disclose which country he was in.
