Former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has slammed a N1 billion fundamental rights enforcement suit against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Enforcement Commission (ICPC) over alleged unlawful invasion of his Abuja residence.
El-Rufai, through his team of lawyers led by Oluwole Iyamu, SAN, in the originating motion on notice marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/345/2026, prayed the court to declare that the search warrant issued on Feb. 4 by the Chief Magistrate, Magistrate’s Court of the FCT (2nd respondent), authorising the search and seizure at his residence was invalid, null and void.
He prayed the court to declare that the search warrant was “null and void for lack of particularity, material drafting errors, ambiguity in execution parameters, overbreadth, and absence of probable cause thereby constituting an unlawful and unreasonable search in violation of Section 37 of the Constitution.”
El-Rufai had in the suit filed on 20th February, ICPC as 1st respondent, the Chief Magistrate, Magistrate’s Court of the FCT, Abuja Magisterial District; I-G and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) as 2nd to 4th respondents respectively.
The seven reliefs sought include:
– Praying the court to declare that the invasion and search of his residence at House 12, Mambilla Street, Aso Drive, Abuja, on Feb. 19 at about 2pm and executed by agents of ICPC and I-G, “under the aforesaid invalid warrant, amounts to a gross violation of the applicant’s fundamental rights to dignity of the human person, personal liberty, fair hearing, and privacy under Sections 34, 35, 36, and 37 of the Constitution.”
– Asking the court to declare that “any evidence obtained pursuant to the aforesaid invalid warrant and unlawful search is inadmissible in any proceedings against the applicant, as it was procured in breach of constitutional safeguards.
– An order of injunction restraining the respondents and their agents from further relying on, using, or tendering any evidence or items seized during the unlawful search in any investigation, prosecution, or proceedings involving him.
– An order directing the Ist and 3rd respondents (ICPC and I-G) to forthwith retum all items seized from the applicant’s premises during the unlawful search, together with a detailed inventory thereof.
– An order awarding the sum of N1,000,000,000.00 (One Billion Naira) as general, exemplary, and aggravated damages against the respondents jointly and severally for the violations of the applicant’s fundamental rights, including trespass, unlawful seizure, and the resultant psychological trauma, humiliation, distress, infringement of privacy, and reputational harm
