Judiciary orders police to pay N100m in compensation for fatal incident involving 22-year-old in Calabar

A Federal High Court in Calabar has ordered the Nigeria Police Force and four other respondents to pay N100 million in damages, following the death of 22-year-old Onyekachi Mba, who succumbed to injuries sustained during an incident involving police officers at the Cross River State Government House.

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The judgment, delivered by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu on Thursday, stemmed from a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed on October 10, 2025, by Chief Roland Nbubuka, counsel to the deceased.

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The court found that the police officers' actions, which led to Mba's death, breached his constitutionally guaranteed rights to dignity, personal liberty, and life, as enshrined in Sections 35, 36, 37, and 41 of the 1999 Constitution.

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The suit had 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.

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Justice Ojukwu ruled that the assault and fatal injuries Mba sustained on August 1, 2025, at the Government House, constituted an unlawful violation of his fundamental rights.

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The court awarded N100 million in damages against the respondents, with the option for the sum to be paid jointly or severally.

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The respondents in the suit included 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.

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