Falana takes over case of tortured couple

A Lagos-based human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has taken over the case of Ejeh Smith and his wife, Grace, who were allegedly tortured by a policeman, Dada Ogunsanya, attached to the Ikoyi Police Division.Falana said he would be pressing charges on behalf of the couple and suing the police for the abuse of their fundamental human rights.He said he also hoped that at the end of the case, the police would write a public letter to apologise to the couple for the injuries suffered during the attack...

PUNCH Metro had reported that Ejeh and Grace were on their way home in a cab when the police corporal asked them to alight for protesting when he beamed a torch on them.In the ensuing argument and scuffle, Ogunsanya was alleged to have hit Ejeh with the butt of his gun and stepped on the stomach of his wife, Grace.The Ikoyi Divisional Police Officer, Aisha Haruna, was said to have arrived at the scene and supported the action of Ogunsanya.She was also alleged to have collected Grace’s phone and deleted her recordings of the incident.The victims’ family lawyer, A. Agbinya, had petitioned the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, asking the police boss to investigate the matter and give justice to the couple.Ejeh told PUNCH Metro on Monday that he had agreed with his wife to let Falana take over the case.The 29-year-old photographer, who made his statement to the police on Friday, said his wife had also reported at the police headquarters to make her statement in order to help the police in their investigations.Falana, who volunteered to take up the case pro bono, said, “We are going to sue for damages and we will also ask the court to order the prosecution of the policeman and the DPO.“The DPO will be joined in the suit because she inflicted more torture on them by taking the phone and deleting their evidence.

“The whole essence of this is to challenge the violation of their rights to dignity. They were assaulted and brutalised without any justification. We will also be asking for a public apology from the police to ensure that this serves as a deterrent to others in the force.”While reacting to police argument that Ejeh was drunk when the incident happened, Falana said it was not a justification for the brutality the couple suffered.Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said if the allegation was true, the policemen on duty on the night of the incident ought to have acted differently.“We are used to police coming up with different excuses when they have been caught in a situation like this. I see their defence as a gambol story. Assuming somebody was drunk, why did the police allow them to go in that condition? Are they saying the husband and wife were drunk? Obviously, this is an afterthought and it will only worsen their case. Even if they were drunk, that does not justify brutalising them,” he added.