Sowore Drags IGP, Others to Court, Demands N1.2bn Compensation for Unlawful Detention

Omoyele Sowore, a human rights activist, has brought the Nigeria Police Force, the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, the Commissioner of Police, Federal Capital Territory, and the Attorney General of the Federation before the Federal High Court in Abuja, demanding ₦1.2 billion in damages for what he claims was an unlawful arrest, detention, and arraignment by Abuja police officers.

A group of twenty human rights attorneys led by Tope Temokun filed the lawsuit, requesting multiple declarations that his detention and subsequent arraignment on October 23 and 24, 2025, were “illegal, oppressive, and unlawful.”

Sowore claimed in the lawsuit filed in accordance with Articles 2, 5, 6, and 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Sections 34, 35, 37, 41, and 46 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) that the police actions constituted a “blatant violation” of his constitutional rights to freedom, dignity, and mobility.

“The arrest of the applicant by the agents of the respondents on October 23, 2025, is illegal, oppressive, unlawful, and constitutes a blatant violation of the applicant’s fundamental right to personal liberty as enshrined in Section 35(1) of the 1999 Constitution,” the activist said, quoting straight from the motion.

Sowore additionally said that his imprisonment, constraint, and harassment were in violation of the Constitution’s Section 41(1), which protects freedom of movement.

“The applicant’s fundamental right to freedom of movement has been blatantly violated by the agents of the respondents through harassment, restraint, arrest, and detention,” the letter said.

The activist described how he was arrested on the grounds of the Federal High Court in Abuja while attending a court case in his supporting affidavit.

“On October 23, 2025, I was arrested in the vicinity of this honorable court due to accusations that I participated in a nonviolent protest that the complainants claimed violated a prior order issued by this honorable court,” Sowore stated.

He accused the police of utilizing “self-help rather than due process,” adding that he had never received such an order.

In addition to ₦1 billion in punitive and exemplary damages for the alleged “illegal violation of his fundamental human rights,” Sowore’s legal team is requesting that the court order the defendants to pay ₦200 million in general damages for the illegal arrest and imprisonment.

Additionally, the lawsuit requests an injunction for the Nigeria Police Force, the FCT Commissioner of Police, and the IGP to publicly apologize for breaching Sowore’s rights in at least three national newspapers.

Additionally, under the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act and the Anti-Torture Act of 2017, the activist is requesting that the court order the Attorney General of the Federation to take disciplinary action against the IGP and the FCT Police Commissioner.

The lawsuit states: “The applicant is entitled to an order compelling the respondents to pay ₦1.2 billion as damages and to tender public apologies for the blatant violation of his fundamental rights without following due process of law.”

The original motion claimed that the police’s actions violated many international human rights treaties that Nigeria is bound by, the African Charter, and the Nigerian Constitution.

Sowore’s attorneys argued that the respondents’ conduct were a flagrant breach of Articles 2, 5, 6, and 12 of the African Charter as well as Sections 34(1), 35, 37, and 41 of the Constitution.

Twenty human rights attorneys, including Marshal Abubakar, Pelumi Olajengbesi, Inibehe Effiong, Deji Adeyanju, Ahmed Tijjani Yusuf, Rahila Dauda, Festus Ogun, and Michael Owolabi, signed the lawsuit filed under the legal partnership Steel Attorneys.

The complaint was formally filed and recognized by the Federal High Court Cashier’s Office, Abuja, on November 12, 2025, according to court records that SaharaReporters was able to access.