The trio of Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Adamu; the Officer in-Charge of the IGP Monitoring Unit, DCP Abba Kyari; and detective Reuben Noah, have been ordered to pay three Delta State-based journalists the sum of N350,000 for their unlawful arrest and detention in Warri.
The affected journalists are Matthew Omonigho, Christopher Odamah and Onyekachukwu Meluwa of the Daily Post, Delta Trumpet and The PUNCH, respectively.
Justice Roli Harriman of the Delta State High Court sitting in Otor-Udu, who gave the order, also directed the respondents to tender an apology to the applicants in three national dailies within 14 days.
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Delivering judgment in the three separate suits filed by journalists for the enforcement of their fundamental human rights through their counsel, Oghenejabor Ikimi, the judge held that “the actions of the respondents were calculated and did breach the fundamental rights of the applicants, who are entitled to compensation.”
The journalists had sought N10m each as damages in suit numbers: OUHC/FHR/85/2020, OUHC/FHR/86/2020 and OUHC/FHR/87/2020.
