Chabi Yayi, son of former Beninese president and current opposition figure Thomas Boni Yayi, was arrested early Sunday at his home, according to several relatives.
No reason was given for the arrest, which comes a week after a foiled coup attempt in the country.
“At this time, we don’t know what he is accused of,” one relative told AFP.
“We don’t know if it is linked to the events of last Sunday,” said another close associate, a member of the Democrats party—the main opposition party, which Yayi heads.
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. They include alleged participants, among them former defence minister 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 issued a defiant video response.
In a seven-minute statement, Seba said he had taken precautions since the warrant was issued, though he did not disclose the country he was in.
“You can never stop us,” he added. “We will go to the end of our fight.”
The arrest warrant was issued on Friday for “inciting rebellion” over his support for the coup bid, which he described as the country’s “day of liberation”.
Seba, whose real name is Stellio Gilles Robert Capo Chichi, 44, heads the NGO Pan-Africanist Emergency and is known for his hostile stance toward France and African governments allied with Paris.
He has 1.5 million followers on social media. Born Franco-Beninese, Seba was stripped of his French nationality in 2024. He supports the military juntas that came to power through coups in the Sahel region, which are hostile to Paris and aligned with Russia.
He now travels on a passport issued by the military regime in Niger, which borders Benin.
Several individuals involved in the failed coup, including its alleged leader, Lieutenant Colonel Pascal Tigri, remain at large.