Court orders IG, others to produce detained student Nov 13

A Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting at Gudu has fixed November 13, to hear a fundamental rights enforcement suit against the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun over an alleged unlawful detention of a student, Mohammed Rabiu.

Other defendants in the suit marked, FCT/HC/M/057/2023, are the Attorney-General of the Federation, Nigeria Police Force, Pataka Hananiah, and Abdulhafeez Garba.

Rabiu according to an affidavit in support of a motion ex-parte filed by his lawyer, Terkaa Aondo had been in police detention since September 7 without trial.

The affidavit partly read,  “The arrest of the applicant (his client) in the circumstances is unlawful as his continued detention in an underground cell at the old SARS building Abattoir Guzape Abuja.

“The arrest of the Applicant on a petition orchestrated infraction of the Applicant’s right by the 4th respondent.

“There is a need to restrain the respondents from further breaches of the applicant’s fundamental rights and immediately release the cars and monies received from his relatives under the guise of recovery of debt owed the 4th respondent on behalf of the Nominal Complainant. ”

Ruling on the ex-parte motion on Thursday,  the presiding judge,  Justice M. M. Adamu directed both the AGF, IGP, and four others to produce, Rabiu before the court on the next adjourned date.

He said, “Upon hearing the application of the learned counsel for the applicant, an order is hereby made to produce the Applicant before this court on the 13th of November 2023.

“Accordingly, an order is hereby made granting an accelerated hearing of the motion on notice and abridging the time for hearing the application on notice to 3 days”