A Port Harcourt-based lawyer, Kevin Okorie, and two other individuals have been held in detention by the Nigerian Navy for over three months, allegedly for their support of legislation to establish a Nigerian Coast Guard, FIJ reports.
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According to Okorie’s wife Esther, the detention began on September 10 when naval personnel from the Nigerian Navy’s Iwofe Aker Base in Port Harcourt first detained Jeffrey Agogoh and another individual identified as Udo. The men were reportedly lured to the naval base under the pretense of a meeting, after which Okorie was also called to the facility.
The detainees had been actively supporting a bill for the creation of a Nigerian Coast Guard, which had already advanced through its second reading and public hearing stages in the legislative process. Their advocacy included writing to both the federal government and the navy regarding the establishment of this proposed agency.
“He was invited to a meeting on September 10 and he didn’t return home that day,” Esther Okorie told FIJ. “The next day, he called me that he was coming back home with some naval officers, but he failed to show up at home. He was also unreachable on the phone.”
The naval authorities initially denied having Okorie in custody when his wife visited the base on September 13. However, Okorie later managed to contact his wife using an officer’s phone, confirming his detention. Despite bringing food to the facility, Mrs. Okorie has been denied direct access to her husband.
According to family sources, Okorie has since been transferred to Abuja, reportedly to the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), though the agency has denied holding him. The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has been petitioned for support in securing his release, but efforts have thus far been unsuccessful.
The case highlights ongoing concerns about the conduct of Nigerian security agencies, which have faced criticism for alleged violations of citizens’ fundamental rights through arbitrary detention and denial of due process. The navy has not responded to requests for comment on the matter, with attempts to reach Defence Headquarters spokesperson Brigadier General Tukur Gusau being unsuccessful.
The detainees’ continued imprisonment without formal charges or court appearances raises serious questions about due process and the treatment of civilians advocating for maritime security reform in Nigeria. The situation has left families in distress, with Mrs. Okorie expressing particular concern about her children, who “have been crying, refusing to eat and asking to see their dad.”
This incident follows a pattern of similar detentions by Nigerian security forces, including the recent three-day detention of FIJ’s founder and editor-in-chief ‘Fisayo Soyombo during an undercover investigation into oil bunkering in Port Harcourt.
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