Court orders arrest of Kwara NSCDC Commandant over alleged disobedience of court order

A Magistrate Court sitting in Ilorin, Kwara State, has ordered the arrest of the Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Abbas Mohammed, over his alleged failure to appear before the court in an ongoing assault case involving two NSCDC officers.

The order was issued on Wednesday by Chief Magistrate Adebayo Dupe, who directed the Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Adekimi Ojo, to arrest and produce the NSCDC commandant before the court on the next adjourned date.

THE PRIME NEWS reports that the development followed an application filed by counsel to Barrister Aladodo Abdullateef Nurudeen, who allegedly suffered assault at the hands of two NSCDC officers identified as Ajayi Williams Gbolahan and Busari Babatunde.

Counsel to the complainant, Prof. D.A. Ariyo-Osu, told the court that the NSCDC commandant had failed to comply with previous court orders directing him to produce the defendants and personally appear before the court.

According to Ariyo-Osu, the commandant’s actions amounted to contempt of court and disregard for lawful directives.

“The commandant’s actions are contemptuous and disrespectful, having ignored both the order to produce the defendants and the order directing him to appear before this honourable court,” he argued.

He subsequently urged the court to issue a warrant for the arrest of the NSCDC boss.

Responding, counsel to the NSCDC officers, A. Imam, informed the court that the command had petitioned the office of the Chief Judge of Kwara State for a reassignment of the matter.

Imam explained that the request was based on what the command described as a loss of confidence in the court handling the case.

“We have petitioned the office of the Honourable Chief Judge for reassignment of the matter because the command has lost confidence in the court,” he said.

In his ruling, Chief Magistrate Dupe ordered the Commissioner of Police to arrest and produce the NSCDC commandant before the court on June 10, 2026.

The case originated from a direct criminal complaint instituted by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ilorin Branch, against the two NSCDC officers over the alleged assault of Barrister Aladodo Nurudeen at the NSCDC office in Ilorin.

According to the complaint dated April 14, 2026, and signed by the NBA Secretary, Barrister Dauda Jimoh, the incident reportedly occurred on April 10 when the lawyer visited the NSCDC office in his professional capacity to attend to a client.

The NBA alleged that the officers confronted and physically assaulted the lawyer despite identifying himself as a legal practitioner.

The association further claimed that the lawyer was dragged into a room where he was allegedly brutalised by the officers.

The NBA described the incident as an unprovoked attack and a blatant abuse of power, noting that the victim sustained injuries and humiliation during the assault.

The association also alleged that the NSCDC commandant was present during the incident but failed to intervene.

At an earlier hearing, the prosecution informed the court that the commandant had allegedly failed to obey a previous order directing him to produce the accused officers before the court.

Counsel to the NSCDC, M.M. Kolo, had earlier apologised for the absence of the commandant, explaining that one of the defendants, Ajayi Williams Gbolahan, allegedly absconded after disciplinary proceedings were initiated against him by the corps.

He also stated that the second defendant could not be officially identified by the command.

The matter was subsequently adjourned for further hearing.