The arrest of the father of Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, the self-proclaimed Director-General of the disowned Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), has ignited fresh controversy, with human rights lawyer Femi Falana describing the action as unlawful and a clear case of substituted arrest.
Police officers reportedly stormed the Adeyemi family residence in Ogbomoso on Monday morning, taking Adeyemi’s father into custody. A family friend who happened to be visiting at the time was also arrested during the operation.
The incident reportedly left Adeyemi’s elderly mother distressed, as officers searched the premises in what appeared to be an effort to locate the younger Adeyemi.
Reacting to the development, Falana questioned the legal basis for detaining the father of a suspect, insisting that Nigerian law does not permit the arrest of relatives in place of individuals being sought by law enforcement.
“The father has been arrested. There is no legal basis for substituted arrests. The young man has promised to show up in court, so why arrest his father?” the senior lawyer said.
The arrest comes against the backdrop of the controversy surrounding Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who has been publicly disowned by the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council after presenting himself as its Director-General.
The police have yet to issue an official statement explaining the circumstances surrounding the arrest or the legal grounds for detaining Adeyemi’s father and the family friend.
The incident has, however, reignited concerns among lawyers and civil rights advocates over the continued use of substituted arrests, a practice that courts have repeatedly declared unconstitutional. Legal observers say the case is likely to attract significant public and judicial attention in the coming days as pressure mounts on the authorities to justify their actions.