Jigawa court orders N10m and an apology for man detained 10 years without trial

Justice  Ado Yusif Birnin-Kudu of the Jigawa State High Court has ordered the immediate release of a Nigerian man identified a Ja’o Sabo who was detained for more than a decade without trial.

Delivering judgment in a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed before the court on Tuesday, January 7, the presiding judge awarded Sabo N10m in damages and directing the authorities to issue a public apology.

Sabo was arrested in 2014 over allegations of criminal conspiracy and armed robbery but had remained in custody for over 10 years without his case proceeding to trial.

The judge in it ruling said that Sabo’s prolonged detention amounted to a gross violation of his constitutional rights.

The judge ordered the Attorney-General of Jigawa State, the Jigawa State Government and the Commissioner of Police to jointly pay Sabo N10m as compensation for the unlawful detention.

In addition, the court directed the respondents to tender a public apology to Sabo, to be aired on major radio stations across Jigawa State.

“The prolonged detention of Mr Sabo without trial is a flagrant violation of his fundamental rights as enshrined in Sections 35, 36, 41, and 46 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).”