By Innocent Anaba
Lagos— A Federal High Court, Lagos has berated Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, for unlawfully arresting and detaining former Managing Director of AfriBank (now MainStreet Bank), Mr. Sebastine Adigwe.

The court also awarded N500,000 against EFCC as damages for breaching Adigwe’s fundamental rights. He was arrested and detained by EFCC on May 3, 2011, without a court order

Justice James Tsoho, the trial judge, in the judgment on a fundamental human rights suit by Adigwe on May 6, over his arrest and detention, when he was enjoying a bail granted to him by the court, held that anti-graft agency failed to utilise the litany of courts in Lagos to arraign the applicant within 24 hours of his arrest.

The refusal of the EFCC to arraign the applicant, according to the court, amounts to the violation of the applicants’ rights.

Adigwe, had urged the court to hold that his arrest and subsequent detention by EFCC was a breach of his fundamental right as enshrined in the constitution and prayed the court to restrain EFCC from further arresting or harassing him without due process.

EFCC had challenged the suit, and urged the court to discountenance the application as the arrest and detention was in line with Section 35(1)(C)  and Sections 42 and (45) 0f the constitution as there was a remand  order from a magistrate court validating the arrest and detention.