Rights Group Demands Prosecution of Security Operatives Over Extrajudicial Killings

JOEL OLADELE, Abuja

The Human Rights Association (HRA) has called on the Federal Government to prosecute security personnel implicated in extrajudicial killings across Nigeria, warning that the continued pattern of unlawful deaths in the hands of security operatives reflects a deepening culture of impunity.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the association said recent incidents involving civilians allegedly killed by police and military personnel show the urgent need for structural reforms within Nigeria’s security architecture.

The group accused authorities of failing to enforce accountability despite constitutional and international obligations protecting citizens’ right to life.

HRA Chairman, Saad Kassis-Mohamed, said the organisation had reviewed multiple documented cases of unlawful killings, torture, arbitrary detention and forced disappearances involving security agencies across the country.

Among the cases highlighted by the association was the killing of 28-year-old delivery worker, Mene Ogidi, who was allegedly restrained and shot at close range by a police officer in Effurun, Delta State, on April 26, 2026.

The group also referenced the death of Abdulsamad Jamiu, a serving member of the National Youth Service Corps, who was shot in his father’s compound in Abuja by personnel of the Guards Brigade Quick Response Force on April 25.

According to the statement, the military initially described the incident as a crossfire before an officer reportedly admitted that the shooting was a mistake.

The association further cited the killing of 13-year-old Timothy Daniel in Akwa Ibom State and the death of Japhet Njoku, a security guard who allegedly died after being tortured in detention at the Tiger Base police facility in Owerri, Imo State.

HRA alleged that officers attached to the facility had repeatedly frustrated court-ordered autopsy proceedings in the case.

The organisation also pointed to reports of excessive force allegedly used against protesters during the 2024 anti-governance protests in states including Kano, Kaduna, Jigawa, Katsina and Borno.

According to the group, the incidents showed that the conditions which triggered the EndSARS protests had not been addressed despite the disbandment of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad five years ago.

“The killing continues and the impunity deepens,” Kassis-Mohamed said.

“The Federal Government must stop managing individual incidents and start dismantling the conditions that produce them. Every Nigerian who encounters a security officer is entitled to leave that encounter alive.”

The rights group argued that Nigeria already possesses legal frameworks prohibiting extrajudicial killings, including Section 33(1) of the Constitution, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

It, however, said repeated abuses and lack of accountability reflected what it described as a failure of political will rather than institutional incapacity.

HRA called for all security personnel linked to unlawful killings to be prosecuted in civilian courts in line with Nigerian law and international human rights standards.

The association also demanded an independent investigation into the Tiger Base facility in Owerri and similar detention centres operated by the Nigeria Police Force, with findings made public.

It further urged the Federal Government to ensure accountability and compensation for the families of victims including Mene Ogidi, Abdulsamad Jamiu, Timothy Daniel and Japhet Njoku.

The organisation equally advocated urgent reforms within the Nigeria Police Force, including mandatory human rights training and independent oversight mechanisms tied to any future expansion of the force.

The Human Rights Association is an initiative of the WeCare Foundation, Cape Town, a South Africa-based international human rights organisation focused on issues relating to unjust detention, denial of medical care and due process violations.