Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Investigative journalist Zainab Sodiq has filed a fundamental rights enforcement suit before the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking ₦4 billion in damages over her alleged unlawful arrest, detention, and the continued seizure of her phones and drone by the Department of State Services (DSS). The suit, filed on Monday, August 3, 2026, names the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Director-General of the DSS, the Department of State Services, and a DSS operative, Abdulwahab Habib, as respondents.
According to court documents obtained by SaharaReporters, Sodiq was travelling from Lagos to Abuja when aviation security officials intercepted her over her possession of a DJI Mavic Air 2 drone and handed her over to a DSS officer identified as Ifeanyi. After confiscating the drone, the officer allegedly informed her that it required an End User Certificate (EUC) and directed her to collect it from another DSS officer, Musa, in Abuja. However, when she arrived at the DSS office in Abuja on July 8, 2026, to retrieve the drone, she claimed the invitation turned out to be a ruse. She alleged that she was immediately arrested at gunpoint, while her personal belongings were retrieved from the taxi waiting outside the DSS premises before she was taken to the DSS National Headquarters.
Sodiq further alleged that she was detained incommunicado until July 10, 2026, denied prompt access to her family, interrogated over her journalistic activities, and eventually released without being charged before any court. Despite her release, she alleged that the DSS has continued to retain her iPhone 13 Pro, Samsung Galaxy A15, iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPhone 16 Pro Max, and DJI Mavic Air 2 drone, which she described as essential tools for her work as an investigative journalist.
In the suit, Sodiq contended that the respondents violated her constitutional rights to dignity, personal liberty, privacy, freedom of expression, property, and fair hearing, contrary to the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. A major issue raised in the suit is the respondents' reliance on what they described as "NSA Extant Regulations" governing the possession of drones without an End User Certificate. The applicant argued that no Act of the National Assembly criminalises the mere possession or transportation of her commercially available drone. She maintained that executive directives or administrative regulations cannot create criminal offences or justify arrest and detention in the absence of a valid written law, as required under Section 36(12) of the Constitution.
Sodiq is asking the court to declare that her arrest and detention violated her constitutional rights to dignity and personal liberty; that the respondents' reliance on non-legislative "NSA Extant Regulations" as the basis for her arrest was unconstitutional; and that the continued seizure of her phones and drone violated her rights to privacy, property, freedom of expression, and press freedom. Among the reliefs sought are an order directing the immediate and unconditional release of all her seized devices; a perpetual injunction restraining the respondents from further violating her constitutional rights; ₦2 billion as general damages; and ₦2 billion as exemplary and aggravated damages, bringing the total to ₦4 billion.
Counsel to the applicant, Peter Femi Joseph, said the case raises broader constitutional questions concerning executive power, the legality of arrests based on administrative directives, digital privacy, and the protection of press freedom. The DSS had earlier confirmed Sodiq's detention, stating that she was being investigated for allegedly operating a drone without the required authorisation. However, Sodiq's legal challenge contends that her arrest and detention were unlawful and that the continued seizure of her devices constitutes a violation of her fundamental rights. The case is expected to be heard at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
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