A Lagos High Court has handed down a strong verdict in favour of a Lagos-based businessman, Chukwuemeka Akachukwu Ewereaku, ruling that his arrest and detention by police over a disagreement involving a ₦560,000 luxury hair sale was both illegal and unconstitutional.
The case, heard at the Commercial Courthouse in Tapa, centred around a transaction that took place in December 2024. Ewereaku, who trades luxury human hair online, sold a product to a customer, Tessy Chiamaka Nnadi, through WhatsApp.
Unhappy with what she received, Nnadi reportedly showed up at his store demanding a refund. When he did not immediately oblige, she escalated the matter to the police.
On December 11, 2024, policemen from the Lion Building Division allegedly stormed Ewereaku’s shop and took him into custody without issuing any prior summons. He later recounted that he was assaulted and forced to return the money under threats and intimidation.
Determined to seek justice, Ewereaku filed a fundamental rights enforcement suit—LD/1863MFHR/2024—through his lawyer, Chibuenyim Precious Onyemachi, naming the Nigeria Police Force, the Inspector-General of Police, Lagos State Commissioner of Police, an officer identified as Inspector Tolu, and Nnadi as respondents.
The court heard that the arrest stemmed from a commercial disagreement, not a criminal offence. Ewereaku tendered medical reports and other documentation showing he suffered both physical and psychological harm as a result of the ordeal—including symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
In her ruling, Justice Anjorin-Ajose condemned the police’s involvement in what was clearly a civil matter, stating that law enforcement officers are not debt collectors and must refrain from being used as tools in private disputes. She found that Ewereaku’s fundamental rights—particularly his liberty, dignity, and freedom of movement—had been violated.
The judge declared the actions of the police unlawful and held Tessy Nnadi liable for misusing state power to settle a personal grievance. She was ordered to pay ₦5 million in general damages to the businessman.
Although the court declined to grant a permanent injunction against future police actions, it issued strong warnings about the growing misuse of security agencies in business quarrels.
Justice Anjorin-Ajose stressed that the courts would no longer tolerate such abuses and warned that individuals who deploy police to intimidate others in civil matters may face personal legal consequences.
Notably, the police parties in the case failed to appear or present a defence, leaving only Nnadi’s lawyer, Chris Ayiyi, to respond to the suit.
This judgment is being hailed as a significant reaffirmation of the boundaries of police authority and a bold stand by the judiciary in defence of citizens’ rights.