A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a N500 million suit instituted against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, over alleged unlawful arrest and detention of a businessman, Alhaji Abubakar Ismail Isa, for more than seven months.......CONTINUE READING THE ARTICLE FROM THE SOURCE>>>>>
Justice Emeka Nwite on Monday dismissed the suit while delivering judgment in the case in which the businessman challenged his arrest and detention and demanded N500 million as compensation for his incarceration.
The judge held that the case of the businessman against the anti-graft agency was unmeritorious because the incarceration by EFCC was predicated on a lawful order of court.
Justice Emeka Nwite said the EFCC placed sufficient facts before the court that the businessman was upon first arrest, granted administrative bail but abused the bail by refusing to honour the second invitation extended to him by the agency in respect of his investigation for alleged fraud.
The court said that the plaintiff should blame himself for his act which led the anti-graft agency to opt for order of court to hold him for the period of investigation into the series of complaints of fraud and financial crimes against him.
Isa had dragged the EFCC before the court seeking order of the court to admit him to bail and in the alternative, compel the EFCC to either arraign him in court or allow him on bail.
He complained that he had been held in the custody since June 14, 2024 without being told of his offense and justification for his arrest.
However, in his judgment, Justice Emeka Nwite said that he found as a fact that the plaintiff was first arrested on February 14, 2024 and was admitted to administrative bail on self recognizance but did not keep faith with the bail.
The Judge held that his request for N500 million compensation on the strength of his detention based on valid order of court was not grantable among his other requests.
Justice Nwite subsequently dismissed the suit in its entirety for lacking in merit.
