Mrs Esther Oganya has asked a Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja to award N500m in damages against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and P.G. Records Entertainment Limited over alleged unlawful arrest, detention and harassment.
The suit, marked ID/21235MFHR/2026, was filed by Agbo through her counsel, Emmanuel Ochai.
Agbo, an employee of Afrosport Media Network Limited, is seeking enforcement of her fundamental rights under Sections 35, 36 and 46 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
Joined as respondents are the EFCC and P.G. Records Entertainment Limited.
When the matter came up on Tuesday before Justice Ismail Ijelu of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja, counsel informed the court that the case was coming up for the first time and that processes had been served on all parties.
Counsel to the applicant, Ochai, told the court that the matter was ripe for hearing and that he was ready to proceed.
Counsel to the EFCC, O. Karieien, announced his appearance for the first respondent; the second respondent was not represented.
Counsel to the applicant also drew the court’s attention to a motion seeking regularisation of processes filed out of time.
After listening to all parties, Justice Ijelu adjourned the matter to April 27, 2026, for further proceedings.
In a motion on notice dated January 27, 2026, Agbo is asking the court to declare her arrest, detention and alleged continued intimidation “unlawful, unconstitutional and illegal”.
She also sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining the respondents from further arrest, harassment or detention in relation to what she described as a purely civil dispute.
Agbo further urged the court to award her N500m as general damages for the alleged violation of her fundamental rights.
In an affidavit in support, she deposed that she was arrested on January 22, 2026, at a bank in Lagos by officers of the Area F Police Command, Ikeja, before being handed over to EFCC operatives who allegedly detained and interrogated her at the cybercrime section.
She claimed she was treated “like a common criminal” despite not being a party to the contract dispute between her employer and the second respondent.
According to her, the dispute arose from a contract between Unity Cup Limited and P.G. Records Entertainment Limited for a concert held at London’s O2 Arena, insisting she had no personal involvement in the transaction.
Agbo further alleged that she was released the following day on the condition that she produce her employer and had been subjected to threats of re-arrest.
She told the court she lived in fear and maintained that she committed no offence.
In a counter-affidavit deposed to by operative Kamal Jubrin, the EFCC denied all allegations of unlawful conduct.
The commission said it acted on a formal request dated January 22, 2026, arising from a petition written on August 21, 2025, by Tiffany & Bazaleel Attorneys on behalf of P.G. Records Entertainment Limited.
It said the petition alleged fraud involving an investment of £50,000 in a UK-based entertainment project known as the Unity Cup Competition.
The EFCC stated that preliminary investigations showed the funds were paid into an account linked to Afrosport Media Network Limited, where the applicant was a signatory.
The anti-graft agency maintained that the applicant was treated professionally and granted administrative bail, adding that she remains a suspect in an ongoing investigation.
It further argued that the matter was criminal in nature and not a purely civil dispute as claimed.
P.G. Records Entertainment Limited, in its counter-affidavit deposed to by its lawyer Queency Patrick, denied any involvement in the applicant’s arrest.
The company said it only petitioned the EFCC over a failed investment arrangement with Unity Cup Limited and two individuals it accused of fraudulent misrepresentation.
It insisted that Agbo and her employer were never mentioned in its petition and were unknown to it until the filing of the present suit.
The firm argued that any arrest, if at all, was carried out solely at the discretion of law enforcement agencies, adding that its inclusion in the suit was “unwarranted and speculative”.
In a further affidavit, Agbo denied the EFCC’s allegations, describing them as “falsehoods” and insisting she had no involvement in the disputed transaction.
She maintained that the original petition did not mention her or her employer and argued that she was wrongly drawn into a commercial dispute.
Agbo also contended that the dispute resolution clause in the contract did not authorise the use of law enforcement agencies against non-parties.
She urged the court to discountenance all allegations linking her to the alleged fraud and to uphold her claim for violation of her fundamental rights
