The equipment the police personnel allegedly carted away from the property owned by one Mr. Frank Okafor includes a generator, 17 bags of cement, and other building materials.
Some police personnel in Lagos State, Southwest Nigeria have allegedly invaded a property in Ikate Elegushi, chased away workers, and carted away essential equipment despite a court judgement barring police or any other security agencies and authorities from the property.
The equipment the police personnel allegedly carted away from the property owned by one Mr. Frank Okafor includes a generator, 17 bags of cement, and other building materials.
SaharaReporters gathered that the incident was the latest in an ongoing land dispute, which is currently pending at the Supreme Court.
The Lagos High Court judgement sighted by SaharaReporters on Wednesday was delivered by Justice Ganiyu Ali Safari of the Lagos State High Court on June 1, 2023.
The court in the case which had Bela Vista Property and Development Co. Limited, Inspector General of Police, and Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice as the Respondents, barred the police and all the Respondents from interfering or making arrests regarding the land issue.
The judge ruled that “constant arrest, harassment, coercion, embarrassment, persistent threat to arrest, detain, prosecute, embarrass the applicants by the different departments of the Police Force for no just cause is illegal, unconstitutional and a breach of the fundamental rights of the applicants as guaranteed by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
The judge declared that the “harassment, intimidation, and attempt to coerce and blackmail the applicants to surrender their family property situated at Ikate Elegushi is illegal, unconstitutional, and a breach of fundamental rights”.
But despite the pending court order, one Inspector Waziri of Gbagada Police Division (former SARS office) allegedly led a team of policemen to the site on March 1, 2024, invaded the property situated at Ikate Elegushi and arrested two engineers working on the site identified as Festus, Ben and two others.
Tension escalated on March 6, 2024, when policemen who claimed to be from Force Headquarters, Abuja stormed the property again, forcing Okafor to stop construction work despite the court order. They sealed the property, one of the workers told SaharaReporters.
The worker who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “Police invaded the property situated at Ikate Elegushi and arrested two engineers working on the site, Festus and Ben by name and two others.
“They were released on Saturday, March 2, when legal representation went there. They told them to come back on Tuesday, March 5. They said Lawyer Omotayo should bring the owner of the property Frank Okafor. He was granted bail and Bella Vista the other party in dispute was not present and no representative was present.
“After Mr. Frank was granted bail on the 6th of March, IPO Waziri called Lawyer Omotayo that Mr. Frank should stop work on his property.
“She told IPO Waziri that the police can't give an injunction and there is an injunction from a court of competent jurisdiction against the police and Bella Vista not to trouble Mr. Frank."
He added, “IPO Waziri also called Mr. Frank on the same March 6 that his boss, OC Ubah said they should stop work on the site.
“IPO Waziri went there on Thursday, March 6 to harass and disrupt work, only for Waziri to lead a detachment of 20 policemen to the site, all armed to the teeth. They drove workers out of site, carted away generator, bags of cement, and 2 submersible pumps – 17 bags of cement."
Confirming the development, Barrister Omotayo, the counsel for Mr Okafor, told SaharaReporters that the police in Lagos State have become a law unto themselves and now choose when to obey and not to obey valid court orders.
She said that “despite the pendency of the court barring police interfering in the property and having duly served the Lagos State Police Command the court judgement, some operatives still invaded the property on March 18, chased owner of the property and workers out”.
"They brought artisans and carpenters and sealed up the property with Zinc roofing after loading building materials and equipment carted away from the property,” she added.
She said that Bela Vista Property and Development Co. Limited had taken her client to all police formations and units in an attempt to take his property, which with a two-story building waiting to be roofed.
She said, "They have taken my client to so many units of police and departments and the court judgement restricted them. Meanwhile, the company has gone to the Supreme Court, they should wait for the outcome of their appeal. We have not committed any offence. Police cannot do anything about the land and that is the essence of the judgement.
"Police have no right to determine ownership of land and also cannot set scores. And my client has been there and he has built up the place, a storey building and he is about to roof the building when the police invaded. When we got to the property today the policemen said that one Mogaji placed them there."
Omotayo noted that when she met the police commissioner, Lagos State, Adegoke Mustapha Fayoade, he categorically told them that the command didn't detail any policeman to the property and hadn't received a report that policemen from Force Headquarters were deployed to the property.
When SaharaReporters contacted the Divisional Police Officer of Ilasan Division, SP Ogunrin regarding the alleged invasion, he denied sending policemen to the property.
"I didn't detail any policeman or policemen to the property. My men are not involved because I am aware of the court judgement," he said.
Also, ASP Mahmud Waziri of the Anti-Cultism Unit, whose men allegedly carried out the invasion, denied authorising anyone to go to the property.
"I am not involved and I didn't direct any police personnel to invade the property let alone cart away equipment and building materials," he said.