MALICIOUS PROSECUTION ; REMEDIES AVAILABLE TO VICTIMS

A nollywood actress,Yetunde Akilapa was accused of stealing ,arrested and detained at Alade Police Station in Somolu ,Lagos State, Nigeria. She said in an interview that she was wrongly accused of this offense by a friend who set her up and that she is innocent of the offense.

This takes us to the provision of the law in these regard, which protect the interest of person(s) wrongly or maliciously prosecuted or detained.

Malicious prosecution is an action brought against one person or group of persons by another knowing well that the person is innocent of the allegations leveled against him/her. This can be in both civil and criminal action.

For anyone to be guilty of malicious prosecution certain things must be present, an intention, this means the complainant intend to accuse an innocent person by instituting and pursuing a legal action against him/her, the action must be brought without probable cause and the action must be dismissed in favor of the accused, where all these can be proved the complainant shall be guilty of malicious prosecution.

In the case of ADFUNMILAYO V. ODUNTAN 1958 WRNLR 31, the defendant reported to the police that certain goods were stolen from his house and that he suspected the plaintiff of the theft. In consequence of this, the plaintiff was arrested and detained for one day. The plaintiff brought an action against the defendant claiming damages for false imprisonment because she was found not guilty of these allegation. These were awarded to her because it was proved beyond reasonable doubt that the allegation was false.

Also in BALOGUN V AMUBIKAHU 1989 3NWLR PT 107 the parties in this suit were parties in a land suit, the appellant lodge a report at the police station that the respondent hired a woman to kill him. The woman was alleging to have entered into the appellant’s house and stolen some clothes, and a transistor radio. The police arrested the woman and after her arrest made a statement to the police that it was the respondent that sent her on a mission to kill the appellant.

After a joint trial the woman confessed that the appellant tutored her into saying that the respondent hired her to hill the appellant. The respondent was discharged and she instituted an action against the appellant for malicious prosecution. The action succeeded and he was awarded damages.

It is important to have it at the back of your mind that where the process of search was initiated out of malice or bad faith, the person who initiates the process may be held liable and damages shall be awarded to you.

It has become a norm in our society; influential people set the law in motion against the weak by maliciously using relevant authorities against the weak, know that there is remedy for this, where such person is found guilty you won’t only get the person dealt with but damages shall be awarded to you.

Thank you.

Oyenike Alliyu-Adebiyi LLB(hons)BL