Four Detainees Regain Freedom After Four Years In DSS Custody

A Nigerian human rights lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, has announced the release of four detainees who had allegedly spent more than four years in custody following months of sustained engagements with the Department of State Services (DSS).

Adeyanju disclosed that his firm secured the release of the detainees after engaging the secret police over their prolonged detention.

NewsNGR also gathered that the four men were released after the DSS cleared them of alleged membership of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The released detainees are: Emele Uduma Ibe, Berefgagha Appah, Ondokeyilemi Aggry and Oyeinmokebebeton Aggry.

They were reportedly arrested in May 2022 in Sampou and Akeddei communities in Kolokuma/Opokuma and Sagbama Local Government Areas of Bayelsa State.

The four detainees were reportedly paid N5 million each as compensation following their release.

In a statement he issued in Abuja on Wednesday, Adeyanju commended the DSS Director-General for what he described as a commitment to reviewing cases of prolonged detention and considering his firm’s request for appropriate compensation for affected detainees.

He also disclosed that his firm was pursuing several similar cases involving individuals who had remained in detention for extended periods without resolution, particularly those held at Wawa Barracks in Minna, Niger State.

“After months of sustained engagements with the Department of State Services (DSS), our Firm has successfully secured the release of four detainees who had been in custody for over four years,” he said.

The DSS reportedly introduced a compensation policy for suspects wrongfully detained about a year ago.

In August, the agency released Mustapha Marwana, a Katsina-born carpenter arrested over alleged links to the Ansaru terrorist group, and paid him N3 million in compensation.

Similarly, in June, the DSS freed Nura Idris after an internal review cleared him of alleged links to Boko Haram insurgents. He was also paid N3 million to help him restart his life.

In November 2025, the agency released Kenneth Nwafor, who had been accused of membership in IPOB, and reportedly paid him N5 million in compensation.

In another case, the DSS released Chineze Ozoadibe, an Abuja-based businesswoman, in October 2025 after she was arrested by another security agency over suspected involvement in illegal bunkering and subsequently transferred to the DSS. She received N10 million in compensation.

The development comes amid recurring concerns by human rights organisations over prolonged detention, alleged arbitrary arrests and the treatment of suspects by Nigerian security agencies.

Section 35 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, guarantees the right to personal liberty and provides safeguards against unlawful detention, including requirements governing the period within which arrested persons must be brought before a court.