The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Monday, October 10, 2016 arrested Helen Ogunleye, a federal high court registrar. This arrest is believed to be part of a President Muhammadu Buhari sanctioned crackdown on the judiciary.
At midnight on Friday, hooded and armed agents of the country’s secret police besieged the homes of two Supreme Court justices and some federal judges across the country. Some of the justices were abducted from their homes in an unconstitutional action and an abuse of power by President Buhari.
Operatives of Nigeria’s secret police invaded the residence of two Supreme Court justices, Justice Inyang Okoro and Justice Sylvester Ngwuta, on Friday night and abducted them from their homes at the Judicial Officers’ Quarters in Abuja.
In the dead of the night on Friday, October 7, 2016 just before midnight, operatives of the DSS, acting on the orders of the Muhammadu Buhari presidency, surrounded the Abuja homes of two federal judges, Nnamdi Dimgba and Adebiyi Ademola.
Justice Ademola was whisked away at about 5am in a violent operation in which the security operatives beat up his brother.
Our findings reveal that the DSS is uncomfortable with recent rulings by the judge and his outspoken criticism of the DSS in matters concerning the violation of the fundamental human rights of victims of the secret police’s tyranny.
Specifically, on July 22, 2016, Justice Dimgba berated the DSS for failing to present a suspect being held in its detention facility in court for a hearing. The suspect, Air Commodore Umar Mohammed, a former chief of air staff, is one of the targets of President Muhammadu Buhari’s skewed anti-corruption fight.
Investigations also reveal that Justice Adeniyi Ademola is the judge presiding over the trial of the former national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki. He has also berated the DSS for violating the human rights of Colonel Dasuki and failing to produce him in court where he is being charged for alleged money laundering.
According to reports, on the same night, DSS operatives in Gombe State also invaded the home of Justice Muazu Pindiga, former chairman of the Rivers State Governorship petition tribunal and arrested him gestapo style for undisclosed reasons.
While these developments were unfolding, the illegal siege on Rivers State by federal security agencies continued unabated during the early hours of Saturday as hundreds of Department of State Services, DSS, operatives and policemen attempted to illegally abduct a Federal High Court judge residing at Number 35 Forces Avenue in Port Harcourt.
