Court pushes back El-Rufai's N1bn case against ICPC, AGF, police

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday postponed former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s N1 billion rights enforcement case against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and others. The new date for hearing is 27 October.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the other parties involved in the case are the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF).

Judge Joyce Abdulmalik adjourned the case to give Mr El-Rufai’s lawyer, Akinyemi Aremu, time to reply to a counter-affidavit filed by the AGF against the claims.

The AGF’s lawyer, Maimuna Lami-Shiru, asked the court for permission to extend the time to properly file and serve their counter-affidavit. Mr El-Rufai’s lawyer, the IGP’s lawyer, Ezekiel Rimamsomte (an assistant commissioner of police), and the ICPC’s lawyer did not object to this request, and the judge approved it.

Justice Abdulmalik then set the next hearing for 27 October.

NAN reports that El-Rufai is suing the ICPC, the Chief Magistrate at the Magistrate’s Court of the FCT, Abuja, the IGP, and the AGF. He later removed the magistrate from the case because he could not identify which magistrate supposedly allowed the search of his home in Abuja.

In the lawsuit, El-Rufai is seeking N1 billion in damages from the ICPC, the IGP, and the AGF. He wants the court to declare that the search of his home at House 12, Mambilla Street, Aso Drive, Abuja, around 2 p.m. on 19 February by the ICPC was a serious violation of his fundamental rights.

He claims that the search violated his dignity, personal liberty, right to fair hearing, and privacy under sections 34, 35, 36, and 37 of the Nigerian constitution. El-Rufai also wants the court to rule that “any evidence obtained under the invalid warrant and unlawful search is not admissible in any case against the applicant, as it was collected in violation of constitutional protections.”

He is also asking for an injunction to stop the respondents and their agents from using or presenting any evidence or items taken during the unlawful search in any case related to him. Additionally, he wants the ICPC and IGP to return all items taken from his home during the illegal search, along with a complete list.

El-Rufai is asking for N1 billion in general, exemplary, and aggravated damages, among other demands.

ICPC counters the lawsuit

In response, the ICPC, in its counter-affidavit, said it acted on a petition against Mr El-Rufai and started an investigation that led to the search of his home. They argued that their operatives acted under a valid search warrant issued on 18 February and executed on 19 February between 1:37 p.m. and 3:56 p.m. at 12 Mambilla Street, Asokoro, Abuja.

The commission stated that its officials were accompanied by the Nigeria Police Force, and that El-Rufai’s wife, Hadiza El-Rufai, and his son, Mohammed El-Rufai, witnessed the search. The ICPC asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit and listed items allegedly recovered from the residence.

The police also filed a counter-affidavit through Insp Ewa Anthony. They argued that they have the legal authority to detect, arrest, investigate, and prosecute offenders. They insisted that the search at El-Rufai’s home was done under a court-issued search warrant.

The ICPC disagreed with El-Rufai's claim that the search warrant was invalid, stating it was a legitimate court order. They asserted that their officers followed all legal procedures during the search. The police added that El-Rufai is trying to use the court to escape from the investigation and prosecution. They requested the court to dismiss the entire lawsuit.