Nnamdi Kanu Takes Imo Police Chief To Court Over Defamation Seeks N10bn Damages

Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has taken the Commissioner of Police in Imo State, Aboki Danjuma, to court, demanding N10 billion in damages over an alleged defamatory statement.

The case was filed at the Abuja High Court by Kanu’s lawyer, Maxwell Opara, under suit number CV3179/2025. In addition to the N10 billion, Kanu is seeking N50 million as exemplary damages and 10 percent post-judgment interest until the judgment sum is fully paid.

The IPOB leader claims that Danjuma’s press release of July 25 wrongfully linked IPOB and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), to recent killings in communities in Arondizuogu, Ideato Local Government Area of Imo State. Kanu described the statement as false, speculative, and malicious.

Kanu is also asking the court to grant a perpetual injunction restraining the police from issuing similar statements in the future. He further seeks an order compelling Danjuma to publish a public retraction and apology in at least two national newspapers and on national television.

According to his lawyer, the police commissioner’s press release was issued just hours after the attacks without any investigation or credible evidence. Opara argued that no arrests or prosecutions have been made to back the claim, yet the statement damaged Kanu’s reputation both within Nigeria and abroad.

The lawyer also noted that the remark was made while IPOB’s appeal at the Supreme Court against its proscription as a terrorist group is still pending, and while Kanu is standing trial at the Federal High Court. He argued that the police commissioner’s statement was prejudicial, misleading, and aimed at turning public opinion against his client.

The case is now before the Abuja High Court for determination.