A Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja has dismissed a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by a Lagos businesswoman, Happiness Akile, against the Inspector-General of Police and four others, for lacking in merit.
Justice Ismail Ijelu, also ordered the businesswoman, who plies her trade under the name and style of UMZ Venture Resources, to pay the sum of N50, 000 each, totalling N200, 000, to the first and fourth respondents in the suit.
Other respondents in the suit are the Lagos State Commissioner of Police; his Osun State counterpart; Supol Eludire Clement and Olak Roofing Nigeria Limited listed as second to fifth respondents in the suit marked ID/14466MFR/2022.
The businesswoman in the fundamental rights enforcement suit against the respondents filed by her lawyer, I. N. Onyekwere, asked the court for the following reliefs: “a declaration that the threat to arrest and detain her by the respondents without any just cause at all or genuine allegation of having or being about to commit any crime amounts to infringement and breach of her fundamental rights.
“A declaration that the blocking of her business bank account (Fidelity bank: Account no. 5600748621: UMZ Venture Resources) by the respondents without any just cause is an unlawful, illegal, and brazen violation of the applicant’s fundamental right as entrenched in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
“An order of the court unblocking her bank account number 5600748621 domiciled with Fidelity Bank Plc in her business name, UMZ Venture Resources.
“An order of perpetual injunction restraining the respondents, either by themselves, their agents, servants and/or privies from inviting, threatening to arrest and detain, arrest and detain her or block any of her bank accounts or disrupt her business at 385, Ikorodu Road, Ojota, Lagos State or anywhere at all.
During the hearing of the suit, the applicant told the court what transpired and however urged the court to grant all the reliefs sought against the respondents.
The first to the fourth respondents through their lawyer Mr, Morufu Animashaun, urged the court to dismiss the applicant’s suit, for being incompetent.
Animashaun in the counter-affidavit in response to the applicant stated that contrary to the applicant’s deposition that the sum of N30m, received from one Orisumibola was payment for the purchase of roofing sheets, a petition dated September 26, 2022 addressed to the Commissioner of Police, Osun State Police Command, was received from one lawyer Kayode Ajibola on behalf of one Mr Ibrahim Olaiya, director OLAKS Ventures Nigeria Limited, on criminal allegations of fraudulent diversion/stealing of the sum of N105m, against the applicant and one Orisumbola of Chriskayjay Ventures.
He told the court that investigation revealed that on September 22, 2022, Olaiya, mistakenly transferred the sum of N105, 474 m, into the Fidelity bank account number 5600676876 in two tranches in the sum of N100m and N5, 472 m, which turned out to be the bank account of one Orisumbola Adekunle, trading under the name and style of Chriskay Jay Ventures.
