Court Orders Police To Reinstate 196 Senior Officers Dismissed Over Age Scandal

The National Industrial Court in Abuja has ordered the reinstatement of 196 senior police officers who were forced into retirement earlier this year over an alleged age falsification scandal.

The ruling came after ACP Chinedu Ambrose Emengaha and seven others dragged the Police Service Commission and the Inspector-General of Police to court. They argued that they were retired unlawfully, despite not reaching the mandatory retirement age of 60 or completing 35 years of service.

Those affected include high-ranking officers such as AIG Idowu Owohunwa, CP Benneth Igweh, and ACP Simon Lough (SAN). They were among officers from Cadet ASP Courses 18, 19, and 20 who insisted their appointments were fresh entries into the force and not extensions of previous service years.

The Police Service Commission had, in a February 20, 2025, meeting, decided to retire the officers and issued a directive in March. The move was linked to allegations of age falsification, which the officers denied, prompting the lawsuit.

In court, the claimants asked for confirmation that their original dates of appointment could not be changed by the Commission. They also requested injunctions preventing the Commission from forcing out officers who had not reached retirement age or completed the required years in service.

Justice Rakiya Haastrup ruled in their favour, setting aside the Commission’s decision and granting all the reliefs sought. The judgment affirmed that the Commission could not override valid court rulings that had already settled similar disputes.

While the reinstatement order strengthens the officers’ case, a separate criminal matter against some of them remains unresolved. The Inspector-General of Police has filed a 14-count charge against five retired officers, including Owohunwa and Igweh, accusing them of conspiracy, falsification of age, forgery, and fraudulent declarations.

The arraignment has stalled repeatedly at the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama. Justice Yusuf Halilu has insisted that the trial cannot proceed until the defendants are personally served with the charges. The police, however, told the court that efforts to trace the officers at their known addresses failed, and even attempts to serve them through electronic means were ignored.

Prosecution counsel requested a bench warrant for their arrest, but the defence argued that criminal charges require personal service. The court upheld the defence’s objection, delaying the arraignment once again.

The police authorities have yet to react to the National Industrial Court’s ruling, leaving uncertainty over how the reinstatement order will be enforced while criminal proceedings linger.