Atoki Benson Olaniyi, a 70-year-old security guard, has accused police in Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory of shielding armed suspects tied to violent land disputes in Mpape, Abuja, while detaining him on fabricated charges. In court documents, he alleges officers seized unlicensed firearms, machetes, and military uniforms during raids but released the suspects, including the couple known as “Sarkin Fili”, along with the seized items. Olaniyi claims police ignored his own assault complaint while arresting him instead, despite his role as a witness for over 15 victims who testified at the FCT Police Command.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2250/2026, names the couple, Inspector Bisong, CSP Mustapha Isah, the FCT Commissioner of Police, the Assistant Inspector-General overseeing Zone 7 and the Inspector-General of Police as respondents. He is seeking ₦100 million in damages and protective measures, arguing that authorities compromised the investigation by allowing suspects to return to the community with recovered weapons. His affidavit describes how the couple, who he says controls about 50 armed men, used threats and violence to occupy disputed land.
Olaniyi recounts an attack on June 24, 2026, when the group assaulted him after he warned them about discharging firearms in the neighborhood. While a Guards Brigade patrol arrested some attackers, the couple allegedly pressured him to withdraw his complaint. His affidavit also describes alleged attacks on a family and two other men during disputes over land. However, he claims the couple continued threatening him and pressuring him to withdraw the charges.
Olaniyi says officers detained him from September 4 to 7 following a counter-complaint from the couple. He denies those allegations and questions why police detained him over issues connected to an assault already being prosecuted. The court filings show no responses from the defendants or a ruling on the allegations to date.
Mpape’s land conflicts have drawn increasing scrutiny, with previous reports detailing similar cases where armed factions exploit legal gaps to intimidate residents. Olaniyi’s lawsuit reinforces a pattern of complaints about police inaction against organized violence, particularly in areas where land ownership disputes escalate into armed clashes. The allegations warrant the Inspector-General’s intervention to ensure an impartial investigation, establish what happened to any recovered weapons and protect complainants and witnesses.
