Court Adjourns Suit Over Alleged 18-Year Detention Of Minor Without Trial

The High Court of Rivers State, Port Harcourt Judicial Division, has adjourned the fundamental rights enforcement suit filed on behalf of Gospel Kinanee, allegedly detained within Nigeria’s correctional system for 18 years without trial, to June 16, 2026, for hearing.

The case, instituted by the Haven360 Community Impact Initiative (Haven360 Foundation), came before Justice Okogbule Gbasam on Monday.

The court granted an adjournment after counsel representing the first and second respondents filed their counter-affidavit on the day of the hearing.

According to the foundation, Kinanee disappeared in 2007 at the age of 14 and was allegedly held in custody without trial, official records, identification, or lawful justification. The organisation said he was eventually released in July 2025 through its intervention and was found to be severely traumatised and mentally unstable after years of incarceration.

Haven360 stated that extensive efforts were made to secure accountability and medical support from relevant government agencies, but those efforts proved unsuccessful.

Speaking with journalists after the court session, President of the Haven360 Community Impact Initiative, Cyrus Onu, said the foundation remains committed to the case.

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“We are here on a fundamental rights enforcement application filed by the Haven360 Community Impact Initiative on behalf of Gospel Kinanee. You will recall that Gospel Kinanee was a 14-year-old boy who went missing around 2007 and was later found in the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre 18 years later. He spent 18 years in custody, during which he suffered irreparable damage, including to his mental health and cognitive capacity,” Onu said.

He explained that the foundation is seeking the enforcement of Kinanee’s fundamental rights and is demanding ₦10 billion in compensation, among
other reliefs alleging violations of Kinanee’s constitutional and fundamental human rights.

According to him, the matter was originally scheduled for hearing on June 1, but counsel for the first and second respondents, representing the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Federal Republic of Nigeria, filed their counter-affidavit only on the morning of the hearing.

“The matter first came up on May 14, and the respondents had not filed their processes. The court adjourned to today to allow them to do so, but they still failed to file on time and only submitted their documents this morning.
“However, in the interest of a fair hearing, the court exercised its discretion and granted an adjournment. Since they filed today and we also responded today, the court gave them time to review our processes. The matter has now been adjourned to June 16 for hearing,” he said.

Also speaking after the proceedings, Principal State Counsel with the Federal Ministry of Justice, Allen Mbadiwe, said the matter was adjourned to enable the respondents to respond to fresh issues raised by the applicants.

“The matter was slated for hearing today, but it has been adjourned to June 16, 2026. This is a complex case. We have filed our defence and responded to the application.

“The adjournment became necessary because the applicants raised new issues in their processes, and we needed time to respond. We also received a communication from the Nigerian Correctional Service, which requires us to file further affidavits before the hearing date,” Mbadiwe said.