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On Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, the Lagos State command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned two persons before Justice Olubunmi Abike-Fadipe of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, the state capital.
In a post on the agency’s official Instagram handle, the EFCC shared a mugshot of one of the accused persons, indicating that he had been apprehended for alleged theft and money laundering in foreign currency.
Posting a photo of an accused person publicly has become commonplace in Nigeria’s criminal justice system, as seen in other jurisdictions. In fact, the police have granted journalists access to film suspects in their custody.
Such practices have raised concerns of conflict with the constitutionally guaranteed right to a fair hearing, as these accused persons are exposed to public verdict before a judgement from a properly constituted court of law.
DUBAWA, as part of its Media and Information Literacy (MIL) role, explores the legality of subjecting accused persons to public opinion before they’re convicted.
Where does the law stand?
Under Section 36(5) of the Nigerian Constitution (1999), every Nigerian charged with a criminal offence is presumed innocent until a competent court of law proves otherwise.
Known in law as the presumption of innocence, it means a person accused of a criminal offence must be treated as innocent until their guilt is legally established. Thus, under this principle, a pre-trial media parade of suspects, whether by posting on social media or on camera, is unlawful.
Meanwhile, a mere public display of a suspect’s photograph may not undermine the constitutional principle if it does not establish guilt before legal determination. Our findings indicate that the circumstances surrounding the conduct will determine the legality.
Lawyers weigh in
In a telephone interview, Olatunde Damilola, a lead practitioner at Heltavel LP, told DUBAWA that the law prohibits the EFCC, the police or other agency from publicly parading suspects or publishing their photographs before conviction.
“By virtue of Section 34 of the Constitution, every person is entitled to dignity and honourable treatment,” he said. “Publishing the name of suspects who are yet to be found guilty of the alleged crimes demeans their reputation in the eyes of the public, which cannot be redeemed even in instances where they are later acquitted of such offence.”
The Akure-based lawyer urged that anyone who was publicly paraded and later acquitted of the alleged crime could sue for breach of the lawful right to human dignity and the presumption of innocence, including defamation.
Ahmed Habeeb, a litigation lawyer in Lagos State, shared a similar position, citing provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (2015) and the Nigeria Data Protection Act (2023).
He explained that a lawful basis must exist before a suspect’s photograph can be published because mere suspicion cannot serve as a ground [for such publication], and that the court determines that basis after a trial.
“Even law enforcement agencies can obtain personal data of suspects, including their photographs, specifically for internal documentation; these agencies do not have the right to process or publish such on the internet,” Ahmed noted.
How does the court see the pre-trial parade?
DUBAWA examined court judgments on the legality of parading a suspect before a formal trial.
In one case involving Victor Ojionu v. Inspector-General of Police (IGP), the Nigerian police arrested the plaintiff in 2020 on allegations of fraud. They then detained him without a warrant and paraded him in handcuffs.
Delivering judgment, the court awarded N1 million in favour of Ojionu as damages, holding that the parade violated his fundamental human rights.
Similarly, in Ottoh Obono v. IGP (2009), the court awarded N20 million in damages in favour of Ottoh, who was paraded on the Punch newspaper for armed robbery. The court also condemned the act, saying that it was inconsistent with the presumption of innocence guaranteed under the Constitution.
Conclusion
DUBAWA’s findings show that any law enforcement body in Nigeria that parades a suspect on camera, social media, before the press or by other means without a court pronouncement has acted against the law. Thus, parading a suspect publicly before trial is illegal.
However, authorities may take a suspect’s photographs and other details for identification, internal documentation, or other lawful purposes, but not for publication.