Court Grants Bail To Businessman Detained By Navy Since August Without Charge
A Federal High Court, Lagos, Thursday, admitted bail to a businessman, Olalekan Malik, who has been allegedly detained by Nigeria Navy since August 29, 2018, without any charges filed against him.
Justice Sule Hassan who presided over the court, admitted Malik, who deals in boats hiring business, to bail, after his lawyer, McAnthony Aikharialea, had argued an exparte motion filed before the court for an order for enforcement of fundamental rights.
The motion marked FHC/L/CS/1584/18, Aikharialea had urged the court for an order granting the applicant bail forthwith from the respondents’ or any other agency’s detention they met want to hand him over to pending arraignment.
He also sought for an order compelling the respondents or any government agency they may likely him handover to, to appear before the court with the businessman to show cause why he should not be for any offence alleges against him, having gone beyond reasonable time to do so.
Joined as respondents in the suit are: Chief of Naval Staff and Aminu Goni, Officer-in-Charge of Naval Post, Atlas Cove, Lagos.
Moving the application on Thursday, Aikharialea told the court that Justice Rilwan Aikawa of the same court, had on October 25, 2018, made an ordered for the production of the businessman in court and that the order was served both in Lagos and Abuja offices of the respondents, but till date, the Nigerian Navy authority ignored the said order.
Upon hearing the submission of the businessman’s lawyer, Justice Hassan pronounced the following orders: “I have listened carefully to the submission of the counsel and as well gone through all the processes before the court.
“From the court record, the first and second respondents were duly served with the hearing notice. The respondents were represented in court but not with a counsel, that shown that the respondents are aware that the matter us coming up today.
“On this ground, I’m compelled to grant the applicant’s bail application. The applicant is hereby admitted to bail in the sum of N3 million with one surety. The surety must be a landed property owner with the court’s jurisdiction. Or, a public servant with Lagos State or federal government, who must not be an officer below Grade Level 14.
“The surety in case of landed property owner, must submit the title documents to the court’s register for verification, while the public servant must obtain a letter from his or her Head of Department confirming his or her statue”.
Justice Hassan also ordered the surety to submit two recent photographs passport and that the applicant to submit his international passport if any to the court’s registry.
In the affidavit in support of the exparte application deposed to by Oluwanisola Malik, a brother to the applicant, averred that his brother was arrested on August 29, 2018, at the Naval Anchorage Station at Atlas Cove, where he had gone to search for his missing boats.
The deponent stated that not quite three minutes or so, the Applicant opened up in the Naval Office at Atlas Cove to make his inquires about his wooden boats and the persons in his office record that hired the missing wooden boats, he was ordered arrested by the officers he met.
He also stated that the Applicant was instantly construed to mean the sponsor or boss to the wooden boats hirers and detained and every effort made by the Applicant to explain himself to convince the Naval men of his mission to search for his missing wooden boats to the Navy officers fell on deaf ears. Adding that subsequently after some days, the Naval men took the Applicant to there office at Tapa-Bay right at the Atlas Cove, to search and during the cause of the search, the sum of N3,500,000.00 (Three Million Five Hundred Thousand Naira) that the Applicant had collected from his numerous customers and was yet to be taken to the bank was found and seized by the Naval men who went for the search.
The deponent also stated that the Applicant took time to explain the source of the money found in his office and how he routinely and periodically takes every such gathered sum of money to his bank.
But despite such explanation and claim of innocent of all the Naval men alleged, they continue to hold on to him and kept intimidating the Applicant’s family
He averred that based on the aforementioned, he humbly urge the Honourable Court to either grant the bail of the Applicant with most liberal terms or compel the Respondent or any other Agency they may want to hand him over to produce the former in court forthwith for possible arraignment (if any); and should My Lord be disposed to considering the Applicant’s bail, l undertake to make sure a reliable surety is provided and the assurance that the Applicant will always be in court until the full determination of the case against him (if any).
The matter has been adjourned till January 17, 2019, for hearing of the applicant’s substantive suit against the respondents.
In the substantive suit, the applicant is asking the court to award cost of N100 million against the respondents for breaching his fundamental rights.
