Court awards N100m damages against Police over death of 22-year-old in Calabar

By Ike Uchechukwu

CALABAR — A Federal High Court sitting in Calabar has awarded N100 million in damages against the Nigeria Police Force and four other respondents over the death of 22-year-old Onyekachi Mba, who died after an incident involving police officers attached to the Cross River State Government House.

Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu delivered the judgment on Thursday in a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed on October 10, 2025, by the deceased’s counsel, Chief Roland Nbubuka.

The court held that the actions of the police officers, which led to Mba’s death, constituted a violation of his constitutionally guaranteed rights to dignity, personal liberty, and life as provided under Sections 35, 36, 37, and 41 of the 1999 Constitution.

The suit sought declarations that the deceased was subjected to unlawful treatment inconsistent with his fundamental rights and requested compensation for the alleged violations under Section 46 of the Constitution.

In her judgment, Justice Ojukwu ruled that the assault and fatal injuries sustained by Mba during the incident at the Government House on August 1, 2025, amounted to an unlawful violation of his fundamental rights.

The court consequently awarded N100 million in damages against the respondents, ruling that the sum may be paid jointly or severally.

The respondents in the suit are the Nigeria Police Force, ASP Victor Edet, the Police Service Commission, the Commissioner of Police, Cross River State, and SP Emmanuel Dickson, Chief Security Officer, Government House, Calabar.

According to court records, Mba sustained severe injuries during the August 1, 2025, incident and later died at the Naval Reference Hospital in Calabar.

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