The Lagos State High Court in Ikeja has authorized national media to serve contempt proceedings against prominent clergy and police officers for allegedly disobeying a court judgment on a desirable tract of property at the Gbagada Industrial Estate, Lagos.
The Nation reports that Justice O.A. Ogala allowed 11 Plc, the judgment creditor, to serve Forms 48 and 49, statutory notices warning of the consequences of disobeying court orders, on some alleged contemnors by substituted means on November 4 after claims that they had frustrated the execution of a valid court judgment.
The court authorized publication of contempt processes on the first to fourth alleged contemnors in highly distributed national newspapers as The Punch, ThisDay, The Guardian, and The Nation.
On December 6, 2022, the court ruled in Suit No. ID/1795/2009 that 11 Plc was the rightful owner of Plot 5, Block B, Gbagada Industrial Estate, Gbagada, Shomolu Local Government Area, Lagos State.
The Deputy Sheriff of the High Court of Lagos State legitimately gave the corporation exclusive ownership of the land, according to certified court documents.
The court heard affidavits that 11 Plc lived peacefully on the land from April 15, 2025, to April 24, 2025, when police officers allegedly acting under senior officers forcefully evicted and padlocked the property.
Harvesters International Christian Centre and three of its trustees, Pastors Bolaji Idowu, Omowunmi Idowu, and Adedeji Agboade, are accused of contemning the Nigeria Police Force, including CSP Mariam Ogunmolasuyi of the Anti-Piracy Unit, Mr. Adegoke Fayoade, the Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos, and IGP Kayode Egbetokun.
The company claimed in an affidavit sworn to by Gbenga Onilude, a litigation officer at BA LAW LLP, solicitors to 11 Plc, that the religious body and its trustees, privies of one of the judgment debtors, Ayodele Eniola, Esq., continued to claim ownership of the land despite the court’s judgment.
The company also accused the police of exceeding their constitutional powers by reopening court-decided ownership and title issues.
The evidence claimed that Zone 2 Police Command officers repeatedly invited the parties and inspected title papers and court judgments, essentially appealing a binding High Court decision.
It was also claimed that the cops shut the judgment creditor out but allowed the other claims free access in contravention of court instructions.
The judgment debtors have not appealed the December 2022 judgment or the perpetual injunctive reliefs given to 11 Plc, according to court records.
The company claimed that occupying the property and refusing to leave was a gross contempt and an affront to the court.
About the Author
