Outrage as police operatives allegedly harass bailiffs enforcing court order

The Anaocha Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has raised an alarm over alleged harassment of court bailiffs by police operatives in Anambra State.

Anaocha is a local government area in Anambra State.

Chairman of the NBA branch Uzoma Dioha in a statement on Thursday said the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of B-Division in Awka allegedly instructed his operatives to harass the bailiffs while they were enforcing an order of the Chief Magistrate Court, Awka.

Mr Dioha, who condemned the alleged harassment, said the incident happened on Wednesday.

The chairman said the Chief Bailiff, Francis Nweje, informed him that the court officials were carrying out the “lawful execution of a judgement” pursuant to a warrant issued by the court when the DPO stormed the location.

The NBA branch leader said the police chief directed the court officials to immediately discontinue the execution and accompany him to his police station.

He said the court bailiffs explained to the DPO that they were acting pursuant to a valid warrant of execution and respectfully asked to conclude their court-assigned duties before attending to the officer’s directive.

“Rather than allowing the judicial process to proceed, the said officer allegedly summoned police reinforcements, who arrived at the scene and reportedly subjected the court officials to harassment and intimidation,” he said.

Mr Dioha noted that the alleged harassment was captured in a video clip, stressing that the incident represents a grave affront to the judiciary.

“If these allegations are established, such conduct represents a grave affront to the authority of the judiciary and an unacceptable interference with the administration of justice,” he stated.

He argued that the 1999 Nigerian Constitution gives courts the authority to determine people’s civil rights and obligations, and it requires everyone, including government authorities and other courts, to respect, obey and enforce valid decisions made by the courts.

“The duties of court bailiffs, including the execution of warrants and other judicial processes, are governed by applicable laws and rules of court.

“Where a valid warrant of execution has been issued by a court of competent jurisdiction, no police officer, irrespective of rank or designation, possesses an unrestricted power to arbitrarily suspend its execution,” he stated.

“Any legitimate objection to the execution of a judgement must be addressed through appropriate legal and judicial procedures.”

Demands to the police

Mr Dioha said it was ironic that those who were expected to enforce a court order were the people obstructing its enforcement.

He said the NBA, as a body, has asked the commissioner of police in the state to immediately investigate the incident, and identify as well as punish the officers involved in the obstruction of court enforcement orders.

The chairman said the union also asked for adequate protection of court bailiffs carrying out lawful judicial assignments.

He said the body has equally asked for “an appropriate institutional apology” to the judiciary and the affected court officials.

“We shall continue to engage the appropriate authorities and advocate for accountability, institutional discipline and the protection of the judicial process,” he said.

Viral video clip

PREMIUM TIMES sighted a video clip of the incident.

In the clip which has gone viral on Facebook, one of the armed police operatives and another individual in plain cloth were seen grabbing a man said to be one of the court bailiffs in the entrance of what appeared to be a residential building.

The operatives continued to pull the court bailiff violently and appeared to force him into a waiting police vehicle but the court official repeatedly resisted.

“You’re harassing a court bailiff on official duty,” a male voice was heard repeatedly at the background of the clip.

One of the bailiffs was heard saying that they came to the area with a valid warrant to enforce the court order.

One of the officers was later spotted reading the court warrant which was handed to him by the bailiff.

Police react

The police in Anambra State have reacted to the incident.

In a statement on Thursday, the police spokesperson in the state, Tochukwu Ikenga, said the viral video clip of the incident only captured part of the encounter.

Mr Ikenga, a superintendent of police, said the state police command had begun an assessment of the incident with a view to establishing the facts.

The spokesperson, however, said preliminary information indicated that the operatives were responding to a distress call concerning the presence of “unidentified persons and a reported disturbance” at a premises within the jurisdiction of the command.

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“Upon arrival at the scene, the operatives met some individuals engaged in the eviction of persons and removal of properties from the premises.

“In the course of establishing the identities of the persons involved and the purpose of their activities, the officers approached them and requested appropriate identification.

“During the interaction, there was a disagreement between the Police Operatives and some of the persons present,” he said.

“The persons subsequently identified themselves as court bailiffs carrying out an enforcement exercise pursuant to a court order.”

Mr Ikenga said the police command, based on the earlier available information, was not previously approached for security assistance before the commencement of the enforcement exercise.

“Upon being informed that the persons were court bailiffs acting pursuant to a court order, the police operatives advised them on the appropriate procedure for requesting police security support during such enforcement exercises and subsequently withdrew from the scene,” he said.

The spokesperson said the police command has reiterated its respect for the authority and independence of the courts and remains committed to providing lawful security support for the enforcement of valid court orders.

“The command has nevertheless taken note of the concerns arising from the incident and has engaged the relevant parties as part of efforts to establish the complete facts and ensure that the matter is handled professionally, impartially and in accordance with the law,” he said.

“The Command will communicate further developments as necessary upon conclusion of the ongoing assessment,” the spokesperson assured, urging Nigerians not to reach hasty conclusions from video clips without full details.