Nnamdi Emeh, a Nigerian whistleblower who brought to light an organ trafficking syndicate within the Anambra State Command of the Nigeria Police Force, has remained imprisoned despite a ruling by the Federal High Court in Awka, which had granted him bail.
Naturenex understands that Emeh has met his bail conditions, yet he remains imprisoned at the Nigeria Correctional Centre due to some forces allegedly frustrating his freedom.
It is worth noting that Justice F. O. Riman, who is overseeing the twelve charges filed against Emeh, admitted him to bail on May 17, 2023.
The allegations against Nnamdi include possession of firearms, money laundering, defamation of character, and the unlawful transfer of N47 million from one account to another.
However, according to SaharaReporters, although Emeh’s release warrant was signed on May 15, 2024, some corrupt officials within the Nigerian Police Force have been obstructing his release through court personnel.
Currently held in Awka prison, Nnamdi Emeh has been moved between various facilities and continues to await trial, having been in detention for over two years.
Meanwhile, the police officers allegedly involved in the organ trafficking scheme are reportedly being protected from prosecution by the police authorities.
In October 2023, Nnamdi Emeh was said to have submitted a petition to the Federal High Court Chief Judge in Abuja regarding his ongoing detention, despite having been granted bail.
In the petition dated October 3, 2023, Emeh, represented by his Counsel, Justus Ijeoma, accused Nkem Mba, the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Federal High Court in Awka, of alleged “unprofessional conduct” in the handling of his bail application.
He claimed that Mba demanded a sum of N1 million as a form of gratification for processing the bail, which his family was unable to pay.
Naturenex recalls that Emeh was arrested in relation to a blog post published by Gistlover, a prominent online platform, which alleged that Patrick Agbazue, a police officer in Anambra, was involved in various criminal activities, including extortion, abduction, murder, and organ harvesting.
He faced accusations of operating the blog and revealing the misconduct of police officers at the Rapid Response Squad Annex in Akwuzu, previously known as SARS Awkuzu.
The police filed 12 charges against Emeh, which included possession of firearms, money laundering, defamation of character, and the unlawful transfer of N47 million from one account to another.
However, as of Friday, November 15, 2024, SaharaReporters quoted a family member to have asserted that the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member remained in custody, despite fulfilling his bail conditions.
“They have continued to incarcerate the corps member that was accused of running Gistlover blog and exposing the atrocities at the defunct Awkuzu SARS despite meeting his bail conditions,” the relative reportedly said.
“Even though his release warrant has been signed by the presiding judge, for some reasons the court officials do not want to take the release warrant to the correctional service.
“He’s been in awaiting trial for almost 2 years now. He’s now in Awka prison, they have been transferring him from Prison to prison,” he added.
It was also revealed that the court judge had signed the release warrant for Nnamdi Emeh on May 15, 2024.
Last October, in his petition to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, Nnamdi Emeh, through his counsel, accused the Deputy Court Registrar of demanding N1 million to process his bail.
Titled: “A Petition Against the Deputy Chief Registrar, Awka Division of the Federal High Court. Re: Charge No. FHC/AWK/C/60/2023, The Inspector General of Police Vs. Emeh Nnamdi Daniel,” the whistleblower who had been in detention for long, from various police cells to prison, alleged that Mba was deliberate in refusing to process his bail after meeting all the conditions the trial judge, Justice F. O. Riman, imposed.
The petition read, “We are counsel to the defendant in the above-mentioned case, who is in custody, and by whose instruction and consent we write to Your Lordship. We shall hereinafter, where the context permits, simply refer to him as the defendant.
“The defendant, a serving youth corper with the Anambra State Police Command, was arraigned on a 12-count charge bothering on, among other things, “making false publications against the OC Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS” and “stealing” before my lord, Hon Justice F. O. Riman, on April 25, 2023.
“Consequently, the defendant was admitted to bail by the court on May 17, 2023.”
It also noted that all necessary terms for bail were promptly followed up and met, but the DCR (Mba) frustrated all efforts made.
“The unfavourable disposition of the DCR started when she, sometime in May 2023, when we commenced the process of perfecting the bail of the defendant, had demanded that we should pay her the sum of one million Naira (₦1,000,000.00) as the bail processing fees.
“We refused and told her that the defendant’s family does not have such money to pay and that such payment does not form part of the order of the court. Since then, she has been acting in the most unprofessional ways towards the process of perfecting the defendant’s bail. The circus of delay has continued without any respite in sight.
“Wherefore, we pray my Lord to direct that this matter be investigated with a view to curbing corruption and bringing the unscrupulous to justice. We cannot allow the DCR to continue as if attaining any position in public service is a license to act at one’s whims and caprices. Thank you, my noble lord, in anticipation that this petition will receive your kind judicial attention in the interest of justice,” the statement continued.
The court had previously been reported to have granted bail to the whistleblower; however, he had not yet fulfilled the stringent conditions set for his release, and the police were already preparing to re-arrest him on the court premises.
On May 12, 2023, it was reported that the police brought Emeh before a Federal High Court in Awka, facing 12 counts of charges alleging that he had committed offenses in violation of various regulations and laws.
Emeh entered a plea of not guilty to the charges.
Subsequently, the court granted him bail in the amount of ₦50 million, requiring two sureties of equal value.
