A coalition of civil society organisations has called on the Inspector General of Police, IG Kayode Egbetokun to order the release of six suspects allegedly detained by the IGP Monitoring Team in Kano for over three weeks in defiance of a Federal High Court order.
The coalition, led by Ashiru Armayau, identified the detainees as Rabiu Musa, Jemilu Musa, Bashir Lukman, Alhaji Muniru, Ikimatullah and Kabiru.
According to the group, despite a directive by the court in Kano ordering their release, the team leader, CSP Mohammed Abdulkareem, has continued to hold them in custody.
In a statement, the organisations described the continued detention as a violation of the suspects’ fundamental human rights and the legal provision that restricts police detention without charge to 24 hours.
The group alleged that the detention arose from a commercial dispute between the suspects and two foreign complainants — an Indian and a Turkish national — over a transaction involving earrings worth hundreds of millions of naira.
They noted that while the parties had a long history of business dealings, disagreements arose during the most recent transaction, leading to police involvement.
The coalition expressed concern that foreign nationals could wield such influence in Nigeria to the detriment of citizens. “How can foreigners be this powerful against Nigerians in their own country?” the coalition queried.
It therefore urged the IGP to intervene immediately and ensure compliance with the court’s ruling by releasing the suspects without further delay.
