Court Orders Police to Pay Journalist N12 Million Over Unlawful Arrest and Detention

Doing your job as a journalist should not end in an eight-hour detention, and an Abuja court has now put a price on what happens when it does.

What Happened

The Federal Capital Territory High Court has ordered the Nigeria Police Force to pay N12 million in damages to Kasarahchi Aniagolu, a reporter with The Whistler, over her unlawful arrest and detention. Justice Bello Kawu delivered the judgment on Wednesday, July 29, ruling that police officers violated Aniagolu's constitutional rights when they arrested, assaulted, and detained her for about eight hours on February 21, 2024, while she was covering a police operation against illegal bureau de change operators in Wuse Zone 4, Abuja.

The Damages, Broken Down

The court awarded N10 million as compensation for the violation of her fundamental rights and an additional N2 million to cover litigation costs, bringing the total to N12 million. Notably, Aniagolu had originally sought N100 million when she filed the suit in October 2024, so the final award landed well below her claim, though still substantial.

What the Court Found

Justice Kawu held that the police subjected Aniagolu to inhuman and degrading treatment, a breach of Section 34(1)(a) and (b) of the 1999 Constitution, and that her detention at a police station in Guzape District violated her right to personal liberty under Section 35(1). Beyond the physical detention, Aniagolu also alleged the police seized her phone and deleted photographs from it without her consent, conduct the court treated as part of the broader rights violation.

Part of a Bigger Pattern

This is not an isolated case. Just last month, the ECOWAS Court of Justice awarded a different Nigerian journalist N10 million after finding the Federal Government liable for a similar rights violation during a protest. Together, these cases suggest Nigerian courts are increasingly willing to hold security agencies financially accountable for how they treat journalists in the field.

Why It Matters

For law students interested in human rights or media law, this case is a solid real-world illustration of Sections 34 and 35 of the Constitution actually being enforced, not just taught in a lecture hall.