The Bayelsa High Court has ordered IGP Kayode Egbetokun to appear in a ₦649 million accommodation debt suit filed by Euphemie Motel's owner. The suit stems from the SWAT team's illegal occupation of the motel in Opu-Nembe from August 2023 to October 2024, without proper permission.
The Bayelsa High Court in Nembe has ordered Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, to appear before it within 42 days regarding a ₦649 million hotel accommodation debt suit. The case, filed by Darius Obienem, the owner of Euphemie Motel in Opu-Nembe, concerns the accommodation costs incurred by the Police SWAT team. The team allegedly occupied the motel from August 12, 2023, to October 3, 2024, without the owner's permission, turning it into their operational base.
Obienem claims that the SWAT team, deployed at the request of Timipre Sylva, the former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, forcefully took over the motel premises. He is seeking ₦649.45 million for the period the team stayed and additional compensation for damages caused by the unauthorized occupation. The court threatened that if the IGP and the other defendants—the Nigerian Police and the Police Service Commission—fail to appear, judgment will be passed in their absence.
The claimant has requested compensation for both the accommodation and usage of conference halls during the period, along with damages for lost revenue from the motel's bar and restaurant operations. The court’s ruling has put the police and related bodies on notice, demanding accountability for the alleged illegal occupation of the business premises.
