Rivers trader, Onyekwere gets N50m compensation over torture by police

Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt

A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has awarded a compensation of 50 million naira to Ifeanyi Onyekwere, one of the four traders arrested and tortured by the police at  Ikokwu motor spare parts market in Port Harcourt, Rivers State in 2019.

Onyekwere had gone to court to enforce his fundamental human rights based on the  torture inflicted on him at the hands of the now disbanded Eagle Crack unit of the Rivers Police Command.

The torture by the police led to the death of Ifeanyi Ikwunado, one of those arrested by the police in December 2019.

The four police officers who allegedly inflicted tortured on the Ikokwu traders have been dismissed and are currently undergoing trial at a High Court in Rivers State.       

Onyekwere said he was happy about the award of the N50 million compensation against the police.

“Today they gave judgement in my favour, I’m very very happy for the judgement. I am also happy about how the Nigerian judiciary, the Federal High Court Port Harcourt treated this matter since 2019 till now when they gave me judgement. The judiciary should keep it up because they are not trying to sweep everything under the carpet,” Onyekwere said.

On his path, the chairman, Rivers state a Civil Society Organization, Enefa Georgwill said the judgement will serve as a deterrent to other police officers and called on Rivers state government to prosecute the criminal aspect of the matter.