The Cross River Division of the Federal High Court has awarded N100 million in damages against the Nigeria Police Force and other respondents over the torture and killing of a 22-year-old man, Onyekachi Mba.

Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu delivered the judgment on Thursday in a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by the applicant and the deceased’s mother, Victoria Mba, through her counsel, Roland Ndubuka.

The suit was filed on October 10, 2025. It sought the enforcement of the deceased’s fundamental rights as guaranteed under Sections 35, 36, 37 and 41 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

It includes the rights to personal liberty, the dignity of the human person, and freedom of movement.

The applicant also asked the court to determine whether the torture, inhuman treatment, and eventual killing of Mr Mba violated his constitutionally guaranteed rights and to award appropriate compensation for the alleged breach.

In her judgment, Ms Ojukwu held that the torture, assault, and killing of Mr Mba by a police officer attached to the residence of Cross River State Governor Bassey Otu on August 1, 2025, were unlawful and unwarranted and constituted a flagrant violation of his fundamental rights.

The court described the actions of the officers as an “abuse of power and executive recklessness.”

Justice Ojukwu consequently awarded N100 million in damages against the respondents, ruling that the amount could be paid jointly or severally.

The respondents in the suit were the Nigeria Police Force, ASP Victor Edet, the Police Service Commission, and the Commissioner of Police in Cross River State.

Also in the suit was the SP Emmanuel Dickson, the chief security officer at the Cross River State government house in Calabar.

Mr Mba was allegedly beaten and shot by police officers at the government house on August 1, 2025.

He later died at the Nigerian Navy Reference Hospital, Calabar, from injuries sustained during the assault and shooting. 

(NAN)