The Federal High Court Enugu presided Over by Honourable Justice Rose Dugbo Oghoghorie on Friday awarded the sum of N1 million damages against the Department of State Services (DSS) for illegally detaining one Shaibu Abdulahi.
The young man, a trader at the defunct New Artisan Market, in Enugu, was arrested and detained in DSS cell at Enugu, from August 19, 2015 to September 6, 2016, over his alleged membership of an extremist group, but the allegation could not be substantiated.
His lawyer, Olu Omotayo Esq, wrote to the DSS Director General and the Enugu State Director of DSS, on the need to put an end to the continued unlawful detention of Shuaibu, by either releasing him or charging him before a court of competent jurisdiction, but the letters were ignored.
Omotayo then approached the Federal High Court Enugu seeking the release of Shuaibu.
The DSS refused service of court processes in the matter, and on 17th November 2016, the DSS called the elder brother of detainee on phone and quietly released Shuaibu to his brother, without waiting for the return date in Court on the 12th December 2016.
Omotayo continued with the fundamental rights proceedings and the Court held that despite the fact that DSS had released Shuaibu Abdullahi, his detention for a year and five months without trial constitutes an infraction on his fundamental rights.
The Honourable Court thereafter awarded the sum of N1 million to Abdullahi Shuaibu as damages, against the Department of State Security Service (DSS).
