A Federal High Court sitting in Dutse, Jigawa State, has ordered the Department of State Services (DSS) to immediately release a 16-year-old girl, Walida Abdulhadi, and transfer a DSS operative, Ifeanyi Onyewuenyi, to the police for full investigation over allegations of serious misconduct.
The teenager, a resident of Hadejia Local Government Area, was allegedly abducted and sexually abused by the DSS operative in 2023. Reports indicate she later gave birth while the matter was still under investigation, drawing widespread attention within and outside the state.
Delivering judgment on Tuesday, Justice Hassan Dikko directed that the girl be released unconditionally and returned to her family without delay.
The court also ordered that the accused DSS officer be handed over to the Jigawa State Police Command for proper investigation, stating that only the police and the judiciary have jurisdiction to handle criminal allegations of this nature.
Justice Dikko strongly criticised the DSS for attempting to shield the officer and for conducting its own internal investigation, which the court dismissed as unlawful.
He ruled that the agency lacks the legal authority under its enabling law to investigate such criminal matters involving its personnel, and set aside any ongoing internal probe by the service.
The judge described the alleged conduct as unacceptable and reaffirmed that accountability must follow due legal process.
Reacting to the judgment, the family’s lawyer welcomed the ruling, describing it as a reaffirmation of public confidence in the judiciary, while urging the police to act swiftly to ensure a transparent investigation once the officer is handed over.
Earlier proceedings show that a magistrate court had also ordered the release of the teenager and the transfer of the suspect to the police, but the DSS challenged the directive at the Federal High Court before the latest ruling.
