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Ogoni family demands justice for son arrested at age 14, jailed 18 years without trial
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An Ogoni family in Rivers State has instituted legal proceedings against the Federal Government, the Rivers State Government and the Federal Ministry of Interior over the alleged unlawful detention of their son, Gospel Kinanee, who spent 18 years in prison without trial after he was reportedly arrested as a 14-year-old boy.
The lawsuit follows Gospel’s recent release from custody after nearly two decades behind bars, a period during which he was allegedly denied his constitutional right to a fair hearing and access to legal representation.
Speaking during an interview with Arise News, Gospel’s elder brother, Paul Kinanee, narrated the family’s painful ordeal, describing the years of uncertainty as one marked by relentless searches, emotional trauma and devastating loss.News
According to him, Gospel disappeared one night in 2007, prompting family members to launch an extensive search across Rivers State. They visited several police stations, detention centres and correctional facilities in a desperate attempt to locate him, but every effort proved unsuccessful.
Paul disclosed that the family even searched the Port Harcourt Maximum Security Custodial Centre, where Gospel was unknowingly being held, but officials reportedly informed them that no inmate bearing his name was in custody.
He said the prolonged uncertainty over Gospel’s whereabouts had a profound emotional impact on the family, adding that both their mother and father died without ever knowing what had happened to their son.
The family’s search came to an unexpected end when a lawyer conducting a routine visit to the prison noticed an inmate whose appearance matched descriptions of the missing teenager. Suspecting he could be the long-lost Gospel, the lawyer later returned to the facility with Paul Kinanee, who immediately recognised his younger brother.
By the time of the reunion, Gospel was 32 years old, having spent more than half of his life in detention.
According to his family, the years of incarceration without trial, combined with prolonged isolation and harsh prison conditions, have left him with serious psychological and mental health challenges, making his rehabilitation a major concern.
Reports indicate that throughout his detention, Gospel was never formally tried before a court of law and was allegedly denied access to legal counsel, raising significant concerns over due process and the protection of fundamental human rights within Nigeria’s criminal justice system.Demographics
His freedom eventually came during a jail delivery exercise conducted by the Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Amadi, who reviewed the cases of inmates awaiting trial. Gospel was among 21 inmates ordered to be released during the exercise after it was discovered that they had been unlawfully or excessively detained.
The Kinanee family is now seeking substantial financial compensation and judicial accountability, arguing that the prolonged detention robbed Gospel of his childhood, education, opportunities and good health.
They contend that the actions and alleged negligence of the relevant authorities caused irreversible damage to both Gospel and the entire family, which endured years of anguish while desperately searching for him.
The case has sparked renewed public concern over prolonged detention without trial in Nigeria and has intensified calls for comprehensive reforms aimed at preventing similar miscarriages of justice within the country’s criminal justice and correctional systems.
The Accord Party has defeated the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the polling unit of former Osun Deputy Governor and ex-APC National Secretary, Senator Iyiola Omisore, in the ongoing Osun State governorship election.
According to results uploaded to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Result Viewing Portal (IReV), Accord secured 131 votes at Polling Unit 003, Ife Ward 1 (Moore), St. Gabriel Primary School, in Ife East Local Government Area.
The APC polled 85 votes to finish second, while the African Democratic Congress (ADC) recorded 10 votes. Other political parties obtained marginal votes at the polling unit.
The result adds to a series of early victories recorded by the Accord Party as INEC continues the uploading and collation of results across the state.
Earlier, Accord also won at the polling unit of former Osun Governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, in Okuku, Odo-Otin Local Government Area.
The result sheet uploaded on the IReV portal showed Accord polling 125 votes, ahead of the APC, which recorded 85 votes. The ADC secured five votes.
Meanwhile, INEC has continued to upload results from polling units across Osun State as the governorship election moves into the collation stage.
Voters across the state’s 30 local government areas cast their ballots on Saturday to elect a governor for the next four years.
The major contenders in the election include the incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji, and African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate Najeem Salaam.
The Accord Party has won the governorship election at the polling unit of former Osun State Governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, in Okuku, Odo-Otin Local Government Area of the state.
According to the result sheet uploaded to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) IReV portal, Accord polled 125 votes to emerge victorious at the polling unit.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) came second with 85 votes, while the African Democratic Congress (ADC) secured five votes.
The African Action Congress (AAC) scored two votes, while the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Young Progressive Party (YPP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) each recorded one vote.
Other parties, including the AA, ADP, APGA, APM, APP, BP, NNPP and PRP, recorded no votes.
The result sheet showed that 228 voters were accredited, with 220 valid votes cast and eight rejected ballots.
The election was conducted at Court Hall I, Okuku, in Odo-Otin Local Government Area.
The result comes against the backdrop of Oyinlola’s reported endorsement of the APC governorship candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, ahead of the election.
Oyinlola, who governed Osun State from 2003 to 2010, had publicly backed Oyebamiji despite the APC candidate running against incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke.
The outcome at Oyinlola’s polling unit therefore puts the Accord Party ahead of the APC, with Adeleke’s party failing to secure the unit despite the incumbent governor’s participation in the election.
Voting was disrupted in Ejigbo, Osun State, after violence broke out at a polling unit during the ongoing Osun State Governorship election.
It was gathered that voters, residents and officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) fled the polling unit as tension escalated around the area.
According to Channels TV, people were seen running in different directions while motorcycles and vehicles moved through the area as residents attempted to escape the unfolding situation.
The immediate cause of the violence was not clear, as the chaos temporarily halted the ongoing electoral process.
The incident comes as voters come out in their numbers to partake in governorship election amid tight security.
Osun Election: Accord Defeats APC in Omisore’s Polling Unit
Osun election: Oyinlola Loses Polling Unit to Accord Party
Osun election: INEC officials take to their heels as violence erupts in Ejigbo
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