Lawyer sues Rivers CP, others for rights violations, alleges protection of oil theft suspect

Myson Nejo, a lawyer based in Abuja who accused Rivers State Commissioner of Police Olugbenga Adewole of protecting a crude oil theft suspect, has sued the police chief for allegedly violating his rights.

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Mr Nejo filed the suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday, accusing Mr Adewole of violating his fundamental rights to liberty, dignity, and property.

PREMIUM TIMES reported on Sunday Mr Nejo’s petition to President Bola Tinubu and others, a precursor to his legal action, alleging that he became a target of Mr Adewole’s actions after exposing a crude oil theft in Rivers State.

The petition, dated 17 October and copied to the Minister of Police Affairs, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), and the Police Service Commission, claimed that Mr Adewole protected Jide Afolabi, Managing Director of Nathern Energy Products and Allied Services Ltd, from prosecution for alleged crude oil theft.

In his fundamental rights enforcement suit filed through his lawyer, Vincent Adodo, on Tuesday, Mr Nejo sought multiple declarations and orders against Mr Adeowole, and other respondents, including the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF).

Other respondents are the Police Service Commission, Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, Mr Adewole on his personal capacity and separately as Commissioner of Police of Rivers State, Olumagba Adewale T.; Commander of the CP X-Squad/Surveillance Unit in Port Harcourt, Raymond Udoka; Afolabi Jide Olayiwola; and Mathern Energy Products and Allied Services Ltd.

Lawyer’s case and prayers

Mr Nejo alleged that Mr Adewole and other respondents have been threatening to arrest, detain, and parade him over what he described as “phantom allegations of kidnapping and terrorism.”

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He also alleged that the police, prompted by Mr Adewole, unlawfully froze his personal and corporate bank accounts without any valid court order.

According to the suit, the affected accounts are a First Bank account belonging to Mr Nejo, and a Guaranty Trust Bank account belonging to Myson Law Practice, his law firm.

Filed under the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, 2009, the application asks the court to declare the police actions unlawful and unconstitutional, arguing that they violate his rights under Sections 34, 35, 41, and 43 of the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

He sought N100 million in general and punitive damages against the respondents for what he described as “egregious acts of threat, harassment, and intimidation.”

The lawyer also sought an order of perpetual injunction, restraining the respondents from further threatening, arresting, or harassing him, and for a public apology to be published in at least two national newspapers.

“The threats, harassment, and attempted arrest of the applicant, as well as the freezing of his accounts, violate his fundamental right to own movable property as guaranteed under Section 44 of the Constitution,” Mr Nejo stated in his application.

He urged the court to grant his application and award exemplary damages “to serve as a deterrent against future infractions by the respondents.”

He also urged the court to declare that the threatened arrest and detention on “phantom allegations of kidnapping and terrorism” violate his rights to dignity and liberty.

He contended that the freezing and threatened restriction of his bank accounts constitute a breach of his constitutional right to own property.

He urged the court to order the respondents to jointly and severally pay N100 million in damages and restrain them from further threats, arrests, or harassment and compel them to publish a public apology in two national dailies.

The suit, filed on Monday, is expected to be assigned to a judge and scheduled for hearing at the Federal High Court, Abuja, in the coming days.

Background

The case stems from an earlier petition Mr Nejo sent to President Bola Tinubu, accusing Mr Adewole of shielding a suspect in an oil bunkering case while targeting him and his client for arrest.

The petition, dated 17 October and copied to the Minister of Police Affairs, the Inspector-General of Police, and the Police Service Commission, accusing Mr Adewole of shielding Mr Afolabi, the Managing Director Managing Director of Mathern Energy Products and Allied Services Ltd, from prosecution for alleged oil bunkering.

According to the lawyer, the case began in 2023, when Mr Afolabi’s company chartered the tugboat M/V Aya Oba Olori II, owned by Dandy Oluwayemi of Atis-Das Nigeria Ltd, to transport crude oil later found to have been illegally obtained.

While the vessel and crew were arrested, Mr Afolabi allegedly went into hiding, leaving Mr Oluwayemi to face trial at the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt. Efforts to trace him reportedly failed for two years, until May 2025, when he resurfaced at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Port Harcourt, to negotiate compensation with Atis-Das Nigeria Ltd.

Mr Nejo said he alerted the Rivers State Police, leading to Afolabi’s arrest and detention for one day at the Eneka Divisional Police Station, Port Harcourt.

He alleged that Mr Afolabi admitted liability and signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to pay N40 million in compensation.

However, the lawyer alleged that Mr Adewole subsequently ordered Afolabi’s release, and then began to take action against him and his client.

He said the tugboat crew and Atis-Das Nigeria Ltd remain charged before the Federal High Court while Mr Afolabi was allowed to walk free.

After Mr Afolabi’s release, Mr Nejo said the police accused him and his client of kidnapping and receiving proceeds of crime, leading to their brief detention by the X-Squad Unit.

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He also alleged that the police obtained an ex parte court order freezing his bank accounts despite Afolabi’s earlier admission of liability.

“It is shocking that the same Jide Afolabi, who admitted his role in bunkering and entered a written agreement to pay ₦40 million, has found refuge under the Commissioner of Police, while I, a legal practitioner who assisted the police, am now being framed for kidnapping,” he said.

He added that previous complaints to the IGP went unanswered, prompting him to escalate the matter to the President.

Mr Nejo urged President Tinubu to direct Mr Adewole to produce Afolabi before the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, where he faces trial under charge number FHC/PHC/215C/2024.

He also requested the withdrawal of the ex parte order freezing his account, describing the charges against him as “trumped-up.”

But Mr Adewole denied any wrongdoing when PREMIUM TIMES contacted him on Sunday.

“Please, I don’t investigate cases; I only supervise when needed. Tell your complainant to speak to the investigating officer. This is cheap blackmail and defamation of my character. Thanks for reaching out,” he said in a text message.