Court orders immediate release, awards N10m damages, apology for man detained 10 years without trial in Jigawa

A High Court in Jigawa State has ordered the immediate release of Mr Ja’o Sabo, who was held in custody for over 10 years without trial, while also awarding him N10m in damages and mandating a public apology from the authorities.

NEWSCLICKNG Online learnt that Sabo was arrested in 2014 on allegations of criminal conspiracy and armed robbery but remained detained for more than a decade without his case being brought before the court.

In a ruling delivered on Tuesday in a fundamental rights enforcement suit at the High Court in Birnin Kudu, Justice Ado Yusif Birnin-Kudu held that Sabo’s extended detention constituted a serious breach of his constitutional rights.

“The Respondents are ordered to discharge the Applicant, Mr Ja’o Sabo alias Ya’u, from detention forthwith,” the judge ruled.

Justice Birnin-Kudu further directed the Attorney-General of Jigawa State, the Jigawa State Government, and the Commissioner of Police to jointly pay Sabo N10m as compensation for the unlawful detention.

The court also ordered the respondents to issue a public apology to Sabo, to be broadcast on major radio stations across Jigawa State.

According to the judge, “The prolonged detention of Mr Sabo without trial is a flagrant violation of his fundamental rights as enshrined in Sections 35, 36, 41, and 46 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).”

Justice Birnin-Kudu additionally cited “Articles 4 (Right to Life and Integrity), 6 (Right to Personal Liberty), 7 (Right to Fair Trial), and 12 (Freedom of Movement)” of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, stressing that Sabo’s rights had been violated.

Reacting to the judgment, Sabo’s lawyer, Baffa Al’asan, said the decision reaffirmed the judiciary’s responsibility to protect citizens’ fundamental rights and uphold constitutional safeguards.