By Milcah Tanimu
A Chief Magistrate Court situated in Nasarawa has nullified and revoked an arrest warrant and detention order that had been issued against Dr. Akintoye Akindele, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Duport Midstream Company Limited.
This development occurred on August 23, 2023, in the context of a legal case bearing the reference Suit No: CMC/MG/CR/175/2023, which involved Akindele as the defendant and the Inspector General of Police as the complainant.
Akindele took legal action, represented by his attorneys Pelumi Olajengbesi and Olalekan Ojo, to challenge the warrants, asserting that they were granted without proper jurisdiction and were based on incomplete information.
The court sided with Akindele’s arguments, thereby annulling the warrants. Furthermore, the court directed the police to release Akindele from custody if he was still being held.
The dispute that prompted Akindele’s case originated from a business disagreement he had with the family of the late MKO Abiola. Akindele has vehemently denied any allegations of fraud and contended that his business adversaries are attempting to fabricate baseless charges against him through intermediaries.
Pelumi Olajengbesi, one of the defendant’s lawyers, shared, “The significance of this court order is that it invalidates the very foundation on which his arrest was executed. This implies that the arrest and subsequent search were carried out improperly and without the appropriate court authorization.”
“In our criminal justice framework, the norm is to conduct an investigation prior to making an arrest. It’s disconcerting that the Nigeria Police Force had to seek a warrant from a magistrate court in Nasarawa State, despite the court’s lack of jurisdiction. Even after the court acknowledged its lack of jurisdiction and called on the police to provide an explanation, the police failed to respond, acknowledging their mistake in the entire needless ordeal,” Olajengbesi remarked.
