The church's security guards arrested the youths and handed them over to the DSS.
The hearing of the case of five youths illegally detained by the Department of State Services (DSS) for wearing T-shirts on which was inscribed #BuhariMustGo is holding at the Federal High Court 3 in Abuja on Monday.
The youths were arrested at Dunamis International Gospel Centre, Abuja during the church’s Sunday service on July 4.
The church's security guards were said to have arrested the youths and handed them over to the DSS, but the church initially denied having a hand in their arrest.
The young men: Ben Manasseh, Emmanuel Larry, Samuel Gabriel, Anene Victor Udoka, and Henry Nwodo subsequently dragged the church and the secret police to court over their illegal arrest, detention and violation of their human rights.
It was gathered that the activists were subjected to degrading treatments by the service and not allowed access to their lawyers and families.
The respondents are the State Security Service (also known as the DSS), the Director-General of the SSS, the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and the Pastor-in-charge of the Dunamis International Gospel Centre, Pastor Paul Enenche.
In the court paper with suit No: FHC/ABJ/C5/638/2021 obtained by SaharaReporters which was filed at the Federal High Court, the activists accused the DSS of violating their rights by refusing to release them.
They are seeking enforcement of their fundamental rights to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, freedom of expression, freedom from discrimination and freedom of personal liberty.
They accused the secret police of violating their rights guaranteed under sections 38, 39, 42, of the Nigerian Constitution and Articles 1, 2, 6, 8, & 9 of the African Chartered on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act (CAP A9) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Among those arrested was a visually impaired person (Samuel Gabriel Iwatannaye), who is also a saxophonist.
He was said to have been manhandled and brutalised by the church officials before being handed over to the DSS operatives.
From information that got to SaharaReporters on Saturday, the saxophonist has been ill and denied access to medical care.