Three Nigerian citizens have filed a N110 million fundamental human rights enforcement suit against the Nigerian Police Force for an alleged violation of their rights through illegal detentions.
In the suit filed before an Enugu State High Court on January 27, 2025, the applicants , Ofor Chika Raphael, Hon Hypolite Okafor and Ude Augustina are further asking the High Court of Enugu, to order the Nigeria Police Division in Awgu, the Inspector General of Police and the Commissioner of Police to release them.
According to their counsel, the applicants, who are indigenes of Awgu, in Enugu State and members of the Voice Awgu Egeleli Forum were arrested in connection with the controversy over the DPO’s indiscriminate arrest and extortion of members of the community for bail.
He said Mr Christopher Api and his wife were first arrested and detained on January 22 and Augustina, who went to give them food in the cell, was also arrested and detained.
Furthermore, the DPO allegedly ordered the arrest of Okafor when he also visited the police station to press for the release of members of the community association.
They are pleading that unless the court issues an urgent order for their release, their lives may be in danger having been detained for more than one week as they have different health conditions.
They want a declaration that the persistent threats to arrest and detain the applicants indefinitely on personal vendetta by the 1st respondent, the DPO of Awgu Police Station, over petitions previously written against him, by the applicants when the applicants have not committed any offence known to law, amount to a breach or is likely to breach the fundamental rights of the applicants as provided for in sections 35(1) and 41, of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and Articles 6, and 12(1) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Cap A9 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and are therefore unconstitutional, unlawful, illegal, wrongful and amount to flagrant abuse of the fundamental rights of the applicants.
