Kanu’s lawyer claims courts award N130m against police for detaining seven IPOB supporters

Courts in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory have freed about seven supporters of the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi, who were said to have been arrested and illegally held in various detention centres by security agencies.

This was disclosed by Kanu’s counsel, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, who added that the court did not only discharged the IPOB supporters but also awarded N130 million in damages in their favour against security agencies.

According to Ejiofor, in the charge marked ‘FHC/ABJ/CR/475/2021, Justice M.O. Olajuwon of the Federal High Court, Abuja discharged Maria Ezediaro “of all frivolous criminal allegation/charge brought against her before the court.”

Ejiofor said: “She was arrested on February 26, 2021 when she visited the State CID, Owerri, Imo State Command to give food and medication to her friend who was detained there, and was subsequently transferred to the Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Team detention facility in ‘Abattoir’, Abuja, where she was subjected to all forms of inhuman treatment, severe torture and degradation.

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“However, following the refusal of the police to release her or charge her to court, we filed a fundamental rights enforcement suit on her behalf before the Federal High Court Abuja.

“Still on our application, she was granted bail by the court on April 21, 2022 and consequently released to us upon perfection of the bail conditions.

”On October 10, 2023, following our application and submissions before the court, the Federal High Court, Abuja per Hon. Justice M.O. Olajuwon struck out the four counts of terrorism filed against Maria Ezediaro and consequently discharged her.

“Also Justice V.S. Gaba of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja discharged the Pastor of the Holy Trinity Sabbath Church, Orlu Imo State, Cletus Nwachukwu Egole; his wife, Ifeyinwa Egole; a prophet of Jewish Faith, Michael Uba, Ugochukwu Samuel; and Raphael Idang. The court also granted them N100m compensatory damages against the police.”

According to the lawyer, they were said to have been arrested and subsequently paraded by the Imo State Command of the Nigeria Police on March 21, 2021, and subsequently transferred to the IGP Intelligence Response Team detention facility in “Abattoir”, Abuja.

“Justice Z.B. Abubakar of the Federal High Court in Abuja also ordered the release of Ngozichukwu Ada-Dav and awarded N30m compensatory damages in her favour.

“Ada-Dav was arrested in June 2021 by a team of fully-armed operatives of the Nigeria Police Force and thereafter taken to the IGP/IRT located in Ikeja GRA, where she was detained in unlawful custody till July 3, 2021, when she was transferred to the Garki Command of the Nigeria Police, notoriously known as the Abattoir.”

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