The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, is facing possible contempt sanctions following allegations that the Nigeria Police Force failed to comply with a subsisting order of the Federal High Court in connection with the abduction and disappearance of Mr. John Chukwuemeka Anozie.
The contempt proceedings were initiated by counsel to Mr. Anozie’s wife, Mrs. Nnenna Anozie, Mr. Vincent Adodo, who accused the police authorities of willful disobedience of a judgment delivered by the Federal High Court, Abuja, on September 24, 2025.
In the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/865/2025: Mrs. Nnenna Anozie v. Inspector General of Police, Justice Binta Nyako ordered the IGP to produce for prosecution operatives of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) alleged to have abducted Mr. Anozie from his residence in Lekki, Lagos, on June 15, 2017.
The court further directed the police to forward the investigation report and legal advice on the matter to the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation for necessary action. In addition, Justice Nyako awarded ₦2 million in damages against the IGP for failing to respond to a Freedom of Information request filed by Mrs. Anozie seeking details of investigations into her husband’s disappearance.
The judgment identified several SARS operatives attached to the former Akwuzu SARS unit in Anambra State as being implicated in the alleged abduction.
Court filings indicate that despite being served with the judgment in October 2025, the IGP has neither complied with the court’s directives nor paid the damages awarded. This prompted Mrs. Anozie’s legal team to initiate contempt proceedings by serving the IGP with Form 48 (Notice of Consequences of Disobedience to Court Order) and Form 49 (Notice of Committal to Correctional Centre).
The applicant is seeking an order committing the IGP to the Kuje Correctional Centre until full compliance with the judgment is effected.
The motion for contempt has been fixed for hearing on February 9, 2025, before the Federal High Court, Abuja. As of the time of filing this report, the Nigeria Police Force had yet to issue an official response to the contempt proceedings.
