Abia Police Command Accused Of Contempt, Disobedience Of Court Order, Yet To Release Suspect 2 Years After Arrest

The Abia State Police Command has been accused of disobeying a valid order of court with competent jurisdiction by refusing to release a man it arrested and detained since 2021.

This is even as the family of the detained man has appealed to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun for intervention.

An Abia State High Court sitting at Ukwa and presided by Justice C.H. Ahuchaogu was said to have on February 21, 2023, in suit, No: HUK/85M/2022, ruled that the arrest and continued detention of Mr Michael Chinedu Okwuonu by the Azuka Divisional Police, Ogbor Hill Aba, was a violation of the fundamental human rights of Okwuonu as guaranteed by section 35 of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), and therefore, illegal and unconstitutional.

According to Maxwell Chiedozie Alili, brother to the detained man, the court order was a sequel to a suit the family instituted against the Abia police command over the continued detention of Okwuonu without releasing or charging him to court.

Narrating his brother’s ordeal, Alili said Okwuonu who returned from Dubai in 2020, was arrested by a policeman from Azuka police station, Ogbor Hill, Aba, identified as Emeka alias Oracle, on January 7, 2021.

Alili said Okwuonu’s aged father on getting the news of his son’s arrest, went to Azuka police station to inquire after his son but was instead detained by the said Oracle who claimed that police were looking for his son as he was a suspect.

It was alleged that Okwuonu’s aged father was released on bail by the police after parting with N40,000, without seeing his son.

Alili said after all efforts to get the police to release their son failed, the family went to court.

He revealed that the court in its ruling, ordered the Abia state police to either arraign Okwuonu in court or release him and his international passport and mobile phones they seized.

The court, according to Alili equally ordered the respondents to pay the applicant a damage fee of N50m for breach of his rights and for psychological trauma.

Alili said it was unfortunate that after over seven months the judgment was delivered, but police had yet to obey any of the court’s orders.

The family is appealing to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun to compel Abia State Commissioner of Police, Kenechukwu Onwuemelie to obey the court order and release their son or charge him to court.

Efforts to get the reaction of the command’s PPRO, Maureen Chinaka failed. Her lines were not connecting during attempts to reach her on the phone and she did not respond to a WhatsApp message sent to her phone before the report was filed. 

– Daily Sun