Lagos woman demands justice over husband’s disappearance

A Lagos woman, Nnenna John-Anozie, has called for justice over the disappearance of her husband, Chukwuemeka John-Anozie, whom she alleged was arrested by operatives of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Anambra State nine years ago.

John-Anozie accused the Nigeria Police Force of failing to account for her husband’s whereabouts despite court orders, investigations and petitions to successive Inspectors-General of Police.

Speaking to PUNCH Metro on Saturday, she alleged that five armed SARS operatives from Awkuzu, Anambra State, stormed their residence in Lekki, Lagos State, around 7.50am on June 15, 2017, and took her husband away.

She said the officers intercepted him while he was taking their children to school and ordered him to reverse his vehicle before forcing their way into the compound.

According to her, the operatives took her husband into their bedroom, ransacked the apartment and seized a briefcase containing money, international passports, educational and professional certificates, the children’s birth certificates and other family documents.

She added that two sport utility vehicles and several mobile phones were also taken from the house.

John-Anozie alleged that one of the officers warned her that she would never see her husband again and that approaching a court or lawyer would not change anything.

“The audacity behind the officer’s words was deeply unsettling. It is little wonder that nothing has been done by the police for more than nine years; there is no doubt they enjoy strong backing,” she said.

She further alleged that during one of her visits to SARS Awkuzu, an officer identified as Obiozor demanded N5m before agreeing to discuss the matter with her.

According to her, the officer later walked her to the gate and instructed security personnel not to allow her into the premises.

She said she was denied access on subsequent visits and had neither seen nor heard from her husband since the incident.

Faced with what she described as the police’s failure to disclose his whereabouts or produce him in court, John-Anozie said she instituted a fundamental rights enforcement suit at the High Court of Anambra State.

She said the court, on July 24, 2017, ordered the police to charge her husband if there was a prima facie case against him or release him on bail.

Alternatively, she said the police were directed to produce him in court and explain why he could neither be charged nor released.

However, she alleged that the police failed to comply with the order and later claimed that her husband had died.

John-Anozie said the police neither produced his remains nor provided a satisfactory account of his death, prompting her to return to court to seek an order compelling them to release his body for an autopsy and burial.

She said the court ordered the police to release the remains to the family on April 16, 2018, but alleged that the directive was also ignored.

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“Court orders were made, petitions were submitted, investigations were initiated, and yet the fundamental question remained unanswered: What happened to Chukwuemeka John-Anozie?” she said.

The woman said an investigation by the X-Squad unit at the Force Headquarters in Abuja, following a petition to the Inspector-General of Police, identified two officers as principal suspects in connection with her husband’s alleged enforced disappearance.

She added that the Force Headquarters’ legal department prepared legal advice and charges in 2020, with the approval of the then Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Anthony Ogbizi.

Despite the findings, she alleged that the officers were neither charged nor prosecuted.

John-Anozie also claimed that withdrawals were made from her husband’s bank account using his ATM card days after his disappearance until the account was depleted.

She said the family’s vehicles and other belongings had also been taken and that the investigation file relating to the case could not be accounted for for several years.

The complainant said the file was reportedly forwarded to the Attorney-General of the Federation in July 2026.

She also petitioned the National Human Rights Commission in October 2020 and appeared before the Abuja EndSARS Judicial Panel of Inquiry between 2020 and 2022.

According to her, the panel repeatedly directed the police to produce the officers implicated in the case, provide information about her husband’s whereabouts and return property allegedly taken from the family’s home.

She alleged that the officers failed to appear before the panel and that its directives were not complied with before the proceedings ended without resolving the matter.

In November 2023, John-Anozie said she submitted another petition to the IGP through her lawyers, Falana and Falana Chambers, leading to a directive for the case to be reopened.

She said the investigation was reassigned to a member of the IGP Monitoring Team but later stalled after requests for relevant documents and investigative records were allegedly not met.

The woman said she subsequently sought the release of the investigation records under the Freedom of Information Act in a letter dated April 8, 2025, but the then IGP, Kayode Egbetokun, allegedly refused to release them.

She subsequently instituted a suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/865/2025, against the IGP at the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking certified copies of the investigation records and legal advice concerning her husband’s disappearance.

John-Anozie said Justice Binta Nyako ruled in her favour on September 24, 2025, awarding her N2m in compensation for the violation of her right to information.

She alleged that the police failed to comply with the judgment until after Egbetokun left office in February 2026 and contempt proceedings were initiated against the IGP.

She said that during proceedings on July 24, 2026, her lawyer informed her that the police had filed a notice of compliance stating that the case file and related documents had been forwarded to the Attorney-General of the Federation.