Soni Daniel, Abuja

A Federal High Court in Abuja has restrained the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Olukayode Egbetokun, the Commissioner of Police of the FCT, Ajao Saka Adewale, and the Head of the IGP Monitoring Unit at the Force Headquarters, DCP Akin Fakorede, and others from continuous violation and obstruction in connection with the River Park Estate dispute.

Justice Obiora Egwuatu, in a ruling on an ex parte motion on Wednesday, ordered the parties before him not to take any action that will foist a “fait accompli” on the court in the matter.

The judge fixed June 26 for the commencement of the hearing on the land dispute.

This happened as protesters on Wednesday stormed the Nigerian High Commission in Accra, Ghana, demanding fair treatment for Ghanaian businesses in Abuja, and Nigeria as a whole.

The developers of River Park Estate, JonahCapital Ltd and Houses for Africa Ltd, Samuel Esson Jonah, Kojo Ansah Mensah, Victor Quainoo, and their legal practitioner Abu Arome, had in their fundamental rights enforcement suit, sought among others, an interim injunction restraining the police, EFCC and other parties before the court.

Others joined in the suit with reference number FHC/ABJ/CS/1130/2025 before a Federal High Court, Abuja, are the FCT Zonal Commander of the EFCC, Mr Michael Wetkas, an EFCC investigator, Eunice Vou Dalyop, also an ACE 1, and one Kabiru Baba.

The suit arose due to several petitions over the alleged trespass and ownership of the estate, which forced the IGP to set up a Special Investigation Panel (SIP) to harmonise and investigate the petitions forwarded by different interests.

The businessmen claimed that after several weeks of sitting, the panel concluded its report and forwarded same to the IGP, who in turn informed the parties through the Principal Staff Officer 1 to the IGP that the report submitted by the SIP will be sent to the Commissioner of Police, Legal to review and look out for criminal and triable offences.

According to the Ghanaian businessmen, Paulo Homes Limited subsequently wrote another petition on the 10th of April 2025 to the IGP alleging the same allegations, which had already been investigated by the SIP.

The Ghanaians also informed the court that despite different letters, such as that of March 20, 2025 and April 16, 2025, sent to IGP Egbetokun and Fakorede, for the release of the investigation report of the Special Investigation Panel conducted by an 11-member team, they have received no reply, instead The Head of the IG Monitoring Unit, Fakorede, allegedly commenced another investigation on the same subject matter, in a bid to alter the report of the 11-man panel of the IGP investigation panel.

The investors allege that, despite purporting to be conducting a fresh investigation into the matter, Fakorede, who is a former head of Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), had continued to invite them, harass and intimidate them.

They also informed the court that, in what appears to be double jeopardy, the EFCC arrested Mr Kojo Ansah Mensah, the CEO of JonahCapital and Houses for Africa Nigeria, and interrogated him for several days.

Consequently, the Ghanaian investors petitioned the Hashimu Argungu-led Police Service Commission, complaining against the conduct of the hierarchy of the force as well as the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), seeking their intervention as the supervisory body for the police and the chief law officer of the federation, respectively.

They want the court to make an order of perpetual injunction restraining the police and EFCC officials from further inviting, intimidating, harassing and arresting or detaining them in respect to matters or body of matters which are the subject heads of agreement dated June 1, 2012, addendum heads of agreement of June 1, 2012 and completion agreement of July 13, 2012, under the guise of investigation into allegations of forgery and conspiracy to forgery.

Besides their demand for N200m in damages demanded by their lead counsel, Adedayo Adedeji (SAN), the Ghanaians are also seeking an order of court compelling the police and the EFCC to release the report of the investigation by the Special Investigative Panel of the Nigeria Police Force led by DCP Usman Ahmed Imam of the Force Criminal Investigation Department.

Giving a background to the dispute, Mensah explained that his company, Jonah Capital Ltd, invited the Nigerian firm, Paulo Homes Limited, as a partner to process relevant building approvals under a Joint Venture Agreement dated January 28, 2013.

In the agreement, JonahCapital through its development vehicle, Houses for Africa Nigeria Limited, offered Paulo Homes 30% of such quantity of land he can obtain building approvals and permits for, but the latter allegedly breached the agreement and began to encroach on more portions of the land and accused Sir Samuel Jonah, Victor Quainoo and Kojo Ansah Mensah of forgery.

Similarly, the former director of the Houses for Africa, Adrian Ogunmuyiwa, who in 2012 relinquished his stake to Jonah Capital Ltd in exchange for 140 hectares in the estate and the director for Houses for Africa Nigeria, John Townley-Johnson, who also resigned and relinquished his shares to Jonah, all made a u-turn and accused the Ghanaians of forgery of the very documents through which they surrendered their shares.

These agreements are Heads of Agreement dated June 1, 2012; the Addendum to Heads of Agreement of June 1, 2012; and the Completion Agreement of July 13, 2012, between the parties, Samuel Esson Jonah and Houses for Africa Holdings Inc.

Police shun AGF’s request for release of investigation report

Meanwhile, the IGP has failed to respond to the request by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation for the release of the Special Investigation Panel Report in respect of the River Park Estate.

In a letter dated May 16, 2025, and received by the IGP’s office on May 19, 2025, and signed by the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Mohammed Baba Abubakar, noted that the office is in receipt of a petition dated May 7, 2025 from Messrs Samuel Esson Jonah in respect and to demand the forwarding of the case file, but no response came from the police.

Similarly, the Ghana High Commission in Nigeria, through its Acting High Commissioner, Eddison Mensah Agbenyegah, on April 9, 2025, wrote to the IGP for the certified true copies of the final report of the Riverpark Estate and undertook to pay for all the legitimate costs, yet there was no reply.

How the police are intimidating us on the land – Investors

The Ghanaian investors have, through videos, detailed how the Nigerian Police Force from the Mopol 45, has been harassing and intimidating them from gaining access to their lands while permitting Paulo Homes’ workers to access the same land and build.