The National Drug Law and Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has decried allegations its operatives tortured Baba Suwe while in custody.

Mitchell Ofoyeju, Head, Public Affairs of the NDLEA, in an interview with PUNCH on Thursday, October 6, 2016, said their operatives did not subject Babatunde Omidina (Baba Suwe), to physical torture during the period he was incarcerated by the agency for allegedly being in possession of hard drugs.

Dismissing Yomi Fabiyi’s claims, Ofoyeju said,

"The NDLEA did not torture Baba Suwe. If he was tortured, he would have said it himself. This is just an unfounded rumour on the social media and it should be disregarded.

As a matter of fact, Baba Suwe was given the best treatment. We treated him with due regard to the requirement of fundamental human rights globally. He was talking to his relatives and lawyer. He was never kept in a prison for the period that he stayed here because he was virtually under our observation."

Ofoyeju also revealed that the NDLEA cannot pay Baba Suwe the N25m damages the court had ordered it to pay because the Appeal Court had directed it not to.

He told Punch, “If Baba Suwe had gone to the Supreme Court, perhaps his case would have been upheld. But he did not do so.”

Baba Suwe was arrested back in 2011 by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Mohammed Airport on the suspicion of ingesting cocaine in his stomach.

He was detained for three weeks by NDLEA. A Lagos High Court ordered NDLEA to pay the sum of N25 million for unlawfully detaining him and also tender a public apology to him.

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