Ike Nnachi, Abakaliki
Human Rights Lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, has slammed the Nigeria Police for deliberate falsehood and distortion of facts in the case of Quadri Alabi who was illegally arrested and detained for months by the Police.
Quadri, a minor, gained wide acclaim in 2023 when he stood in front of Peter Obi’s campaign vehicle during the electioneering period.
He was arrested in January and charged for alleged armed robbery by the police and subsequently remanded in police custody.
But following Mr Efidong’s intervention he was released during the week by the Magistrate Court where he was charged.
Mr Inibehe Effiong also instituted a N100m charges against the Police for illegal arrest and detention of Mr Quadri. However, the police in a recent statement doubled down on its actions.
Reacting to the police statement Mr Effiong described them as false and provocative statement and an attempt to mislead the public on the fabricated case they initiated against Quadri Alabi.
The lawyer maintained that the statement is not only laughable but also ridiculous.
“It is embarrassing to see the police spread disinformation and fake news about an innocent Nigerian child.
He said: “Nigerians will note that in our previous statements, we disclosed that our client was abducted by two ‘Area Boys’ named Lege and Baba Waris while he was on his way home from work and dumped at the Amukoko Divisional Police Station.
“These same Area Boys and their cohorts have been been harassing our client since 2023 in their effort to extort “their share” of the donations made to him after he stood in front of the convoy of Mr. Peter Obi.”
The Lawyer debunked the police claim that Quadri was arrested in connection with street fighting.
“They also claimed that some properties were damaged, and that some persons were also robbed. According to the police, Quadri was identified by some people in the community and by the victims.
“First, we wish to restate that Quadri is not 18 years old as mischievously parroted by the police. He is 17 as contained in his birth certificate and attested to by his mother. He was born on the 29th day of September, 2007.
“Second, Quadri was not involved in street fighting and did not rob anyone, he also did not damage anyone’s property.
“Third, there was no time that our client was identified by any victim of the alleged crimes. The police should tell the public when and where the identification was done and the method used.
“How was Quadri identified by the alleged victims when no identification parade was conducted as required by law, given that the alleged offences were said to have been committed at about 10pm?
“Fourth, the police in their statement said that our client was arrested, but they failed to state who exactly arrested him and the place he was arrested. Their silence on these key points is quite revealing.
“The so-called casemates of Quadri are adults who are not known to him. The police failed to disclose the relationship or connection between Quadri and the four adults who were remanded along with him,” Mr Effiong said.
Continuing the Lawyer noted that the police had detained Quadri for about a week in the police cell before unlawfully taking him before a Magistrate for remand.
He argued that it is the law that once the permissible constitutional limit for detaining a suspect has passed, a subsequent order of remand cannot cure the infringement.
He said that it is preposterous that despite the Legal Advice issued by the Learned Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Lagos State exonerating Quadri, and his subsequent discharge by the Court, the Lagos State Police Command rather than exude remorse, has chosen the ignoble path of doubling down on its acts of perfidy.
He described the actions of the Police as shameless, lawless, and utter contempt for justice and the truth.
“We condemn this gross act of recklessness and irresponsibility by the police. By taking this path, the Nigeria Police Force is reminding the country that it is very far from redemption.
“We shall meet the Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Moshood Jimoh, the DPO of Amukoko CSP Olaniran Ismaila O., the IPO Inspector Odigbe Samuel, and others in the court in the coming days to seek redress and adequate compensation for Quadri.
“We will also file a formal complaint with the Police Service Commission against the lawless DPO of Amukoko.
“Nigeria is our country, we will not allow agents of impunity to get away with such abominable oppression of a Nigerian child,” he said.
