Nine years after her husband, Chukwuemeka John Anozie, was allegedly taken into police custody in Anambra State, Mrs Nnenna John-Anozie says she is still without answers about his whereabouts, despite multiple court orders, police investigations, petitions and proceedings before human rights authorities.
John-Anozie said her husband was taken away in 2017 and that she was subsequently denied access to him and the police neither charged him before a court nor released him.
She eventually approached the High Court of Anambra State, Idemili Judicial Division, Ogidi, in Suit No. HID/MISC.47/2017, filed on July 3, 2017, seeking enforcement of his fundamental rights.
On July 24, 2017, the trial judge, Justice V.N. Agbata ordered the police to either charge Anozie to court if there was a prima facie case against him or release him on bail. Alternatively, the police were directed to produce him before the court at the next adjourned hearing and show cause why he should not be charged or released.
The matter was adjourned to September 19, 2017.
According to Mrs John-Anozie, the police subsequently informed the court during proceeding that her husband had died without producing his body and no satisfactory explanation of his alleged death was provided.
The wife returned to court and, on October 20, 2017, sought an order compelling the police to produce the body for a joint autopsy involving a government doctor and a doctor selected by the family.
On April 16, 2018, the court ordered the police to release the alleged corpse to Anozie’s family for burial, noting that he was not charged or convicted of any offence, an order she said was also not complied with.
After repeated attempts to obtain answers in Anambra failed, John-Anozie said she petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP) at Force Headquarters, Abuja, requesting a fresh investigation into her husband’s disappearance.
According to documents and records she said arose from the investigation, the X-Squad Unit at Force Headquarters investigated the matter and identified principal suspects in connection with the alleged abduction and disappearance.
John-Anozie further said the Legal Department at Force Headquarters subsequently prepared legal advice and charges in 2020, with the approval of the then Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Investigation Department.
Despite those developments, she said the officers identified as suspects were not prosecuted.
John-Anozie also alleged that days after her husband’s disappearance, withdrawals were made from his bank account using his ATM card adding that, the withdrawals continued until the account was depleted.
She further alleged that during the same period, family property was removed from their home, including two vehicles, a briefcase containing money and important documents, certificates and international passports.
Another issue she raised is the whereabouts of the police case file relating to her husband’s disappearance.
According to her account, the file containing records of the investigation could not be located for years. She said, the file was eventually brought out in July 2026 and reportedly forwarded to the Attorney-General of the Federation.
John-Anozie said she approached the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in Abuja on October 9, 2020, where she met the commission’s Executive Secretary, Dr. Tony Ojukwu, SAN, and submitted a petition.
She later appeared before the Abuja End SARS Judicial Panel of Inquiry between 2020 and 2022, hoping the proceedings would establish what happened to her husband.
According to her account, the panel issued several orders directing the police to produce officers who were respondents in the proceedings and had allegedly been implicated in her husband’s disappearance.
She said the officers repeatedly failed to appear and further alleged that the proceedings were adjourned at least 12 times over the two-year period and that police authorities failed to ensure the appearance of the officers.
John-Anozie said the panel also directed that her husband be produced or that an explanation be provided concerning his whereabouts. The panel eventually concluded its proceedings without resolving the circumstances surrounding Anozie’s disappearance, according to the account provided by his wife.
Following the closure of the panel, John-Anozie said another petition was submitted to the IGP on November 22, 2023, through Falana and Falana Chambers and added that, the IGP subsequently directed that the case be reopened and that the investigation cover both her husband’s alleged abduction and disappearance and the disappearance of the police case file.
The investigation was reportedly assigned to the IGP Monitoring Team and the requests for relevant documents and investigative records again went unanswered and the matter subsequently became dormant.
On April 8, 2025, she said her lawyer, Vincent Adodo, wrote to the then IGP, Kayode Egbetokun, requesting the release of the case file and reports of investigations conducted into her husband’s disappearance under the Freedom of Information Act 2011.
John-Anozie subsequently instituted Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/865/2025, Nnenna Anozie v. Inspector-General of Police, before Justice Binta Nyako of a Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking an order of mandamus compelling the IGP to release certified true copies of investigation records and legal advice relating to her husband’s disappearance.
She also sought an order directing that the officers allegedly indicted in the investigation be handed over to the Attorney-General of the Federation for prosecution.
John-Anozie said the police, despite being served with the court processes and hearing notices, did not appear to defend the case and that, on September 24, 2025, Justice Nyako delivered judgment in her favour, ordering the release of the relevant documents and awarding N2 million in compensation for violation of her right to information.
John-Anozie said the judgment was served on the police but was not complied with and her lawyer subsequently issued and served Form 48, a notice of the consequences of disobedience to a court order, followed by Form 49, a notice relating to committal proceedings.
She said the order remained unimplemented until after the removal of Egbetokun as IGP on February 24, 2026.
Following the appointment of Olatunji Rilwan Disu as Inspector-General of Police, contempt proceedings were initiated over the alleged continued non-compliance with the Federal High Court judgment.
On July 24, 2026, John-Anozie said she was informed by her lawyer during court proceedings that the police had filed a Notice of Compliance stating that her husband’s case file and related documents had finally been forwarded to the Attorney-General of the Federation.
For John-Anozie, the development marked a significant step but did not resolve the central issue as the whereabouts of her husband remain unknown.
She said the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation has, as of the time of her statement, taken no action on the case file reportedly forwarded to it.
She also wants accountability from the Nigeria Police Force over the handling of the investigation, the custody and disappearance of the case file, and the actions or omissions of its officers following her husband’s disappearance.
END
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