By Hassanat Adebowale
The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has been urged to investigate three officers from the Force Criminal Investigation Department in Abuja over alleged contempt of court and unlawful arrests related to a land dispute in Osun State.
Legal practitioner Tiamiyu Adegboyega claims the officers arbitrarily arrested six family members—Moronkeji Sikiru, Kazeem Adebunmi, Salawudeen Abdullah, Ibrahim Mutiu, Sanusi Tajudeen, and Adegoke Taiwo—all from Okinni in Egbedore Local Government Area, in December 2024. These arrests occurred despite ongoing legal proceedings regarding the land dispute.
In a letter to the Inspector General, Adegboyega alleged that Oluyemi Ojo, the defendant in the land dispute case, was using the police to harass individuals representing the rightful landowners, Sariyu Oyefunke and Awanatu Jenrade. Justice K.M. Akano of the Osun State High Court, Ede division, had granted ownership of the land to Oyefunke and Jenrade in June 2024.
Adegboyega explained that following the court ruling, Ojo petitioned the Inspector General’s office, leading to the arrest of the six individuals on December 21, 2024. Adegboyega has called for the Inspector General to intervene, asking for the officers involved to be restrained and for further action to be suspended pending the outcome of a human rights lawsuit filed against the police on January 7, 2025.
In his letter, Adegboyega wrote, “These police officers claimed they came for the arrest from the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Force Headquarters, Abuja. The aforementioned arrested persons paid through their noses for administrative bail.”
However, Ojo denied using the police to harass the individuals, although he confirmed that he petitioned the Inspector General to have them arrested. Ojo challenged the claimants to present the court judgment that declared them the rightful owners of the disputed land to the Inspector General.
“They have the court judgment; why are they running away? The police came to Osogbo to invite them, asking them to come with their documents to Abuja, but they didn’t go. If they have the document of the land, they should show it to the police as evidence that this is the land they bought. I petitioned the IG to intervene to allow the government to settle it for us. They don’t have to run anywhere,” Ojo stated.
Efforts to reach the Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, were unsuccessful.
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