Human rights activist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr. Femi Falana, has called for the release of 10 civilians detained by the Nigerian Navy.

He made the call in a letter addressed to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami.

In a copy of the letter sent to Channels Television on Sunday, Falana said the detainees were intercepted by naval personnel aboard a vessel hijacked by a gang of pirates in October 2018.

He added that while the detainees were rescued and the pirates arrested, the crew members who were not indicted in the investigation conducted by the navy into the hijacking of the vessel have since been detained aboard the ship.

The lawyer stressed that the action of the security operatives was a breach of the detainees’ fundamental rights to personal liberty and fair hearing as provided for in the Constitution.

He also decried that apart from detaining the crew members in “a dehumanising military facility,” they have been compelled to wear the same dress for seven months.

According to the senior advocate, since the detainees are civilians who are not subject to service law, the navy ought to have reported them to the police if there was reasonable suspicion that they committed any criminal offence whatsoever.

He, therefore, urged the AGF to direct the naval authorities to release the detainees from custody without any further delay. (Channels TV)