Five Retired Senior Police Officers Charged with Age Falsification

The Federal Government has filed charges against five retired senior police officers over alleged age falsification and forgery. However, their scheduled arraignment before the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama was stalled for the third time on Thursday due to their absence.

The defendants — AIG Idowu Owohunwa (retd.), CP Benneth Igweh (retd.), CP Ukachi Peter Opara (retd.), DCP Obo Ukam Obo (retd.), and ACP Simon A. Lough (SAN) (retd.) — are facing a 14-count charge, marked CR/353/2025, instituted by the Inspector-General of Police.

They are accused of conspiring to falsify their ages to extend their service beyond the mandatory retirement period, in violation of the Penal Code and Public Service Rules. The charges also include forgery, fraudulent declarations, and the use of falsified documents in police records and court proceedings.

At Thursday’s hearing, prosecution counsel ACP Rimamsomte Ezekiel informed the court that attempts to serve the defendants at their last known addresses had failed, as they had relocated. He added that copies of the charge sent to their WhatsApp numbers also yielded no response. Ezekiel urged the court to issue a bench warrant for their arrest.

Defence counsel, Terkaa Aondo (SAN), opposed the request, insisting that criminal charges must be personally served. He argued that the prosecution had the capacity to bring the defendants before the court, stating: “If they could arrest Nnamdi Kanu in Kenya and Omoyele Sowore in Nigeria, why not these defendants?”

In his ruling, Justice Yusuf Halilu agreed that personal service is mandatory in criminal cases, describing the request for a bench warrant as premature. He reminded the police of their duty to produce the defendants, noting that they had previously been granted bail on self-recognisance.

The case was adjourned to November 17 for arraignment, with the judge directing both the prosecution and defence to ensure the defendants’ presence in court.