Extra-judicial killings: Court orders Police to pay victim’s family N200 million

A Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday  ordered the Nigerian Police Force, to pay the sum of N200 million to the family of late Waheed Kabiru, who was allegedly killed by the men of Igbogbo Police Division.

Justice Mohammed Idris also made a compelling order against the Police to publicly apologise in three widely read Nigerian newspapers for the unlawful killing of the deceased, and to release the deceased’s corpse to his family for decent burial.

The judge further declared that the sudden disappearance, killing and extra-judicial murder of the deceased, by the men of Igbogbo Police Division, was illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and gross violation of his constitutional rights as enshrined under Sections 33 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the African Charter and Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Justice Idris further declared that the arrest, torture, and detention of the deceased’s brother, Ibrahim Kabiru, at Igbogbo Police Station cell, from November 20, 2015, till date, is wrongful, Illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and gross violation of his constitutional rights as enshrined under Sections 33,34,35 and 36 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The judge also made a perpetual injunction restraining the police from harassing, intimidating, inviting, arresting or detaining the deceased’s brother and his family members.

Ibrahim Kabiru, had stated that men of Igbogbo Police Division, arrested the deceased on November 20, 2015, on the order of their DPO, Mr. Remilekun Adesoye, adding that on getting to the station on December 2, 2015, the police informed him and other members of his family of the sudden disappearance of his brother in the detention cell of Igbogbo Police Station.

He added that despite several petitions written on the extra-judicial killing of his brother to the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, no response had been received on the matter from the Lagos State Command of Nigerian Police, while his brother’s corpse cannot be found since he was arrested, detained, tortured and killed by the police.

Kabiru also stated that his brother did not commit any offence known to law in Nigeria to warrant the gross infringement of his fundamental rights to life.

Throughout the pendency of the suit, none of the respondents filed any reply to the suit; neither did they appear before the court.