A staff of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Abuja, Chief Charles Robin Njoku has been dragged to the FCT High Court over a publication in some media platforms alleging that a businessman, Mr. Emmanuel Iheme, his brother, Chief Jude Iheme and others were responsible for the kidnap of Eze Basil Nkem Njoku of Amanze Community in Obowo Local Government Area, Imo State sometime in December 2022 and also that he was into hard drugs business in India and China and that he was planning to eliminate Eze Basil Njoku.

In the court papers sighted by BarristerNG, Mr. Emmanuel Iheme, an international businessman had approached the court for an order mandating the Defendant to publish a retraction of the libelous publication in ‘The Nigeria Lawyers’, ‘CKN News’, ‘Amanze Town Union WhatsApp platform’, ‘Amanze Progressive Union WhatsApp platform’ and in all other social, print and electronic media platforms used in publishing the libelous statement.

According to the Claimant, Mr. Emmanuel Iheme, the said libelous publication was aimed at disparaging his reputation and to reduce him in the eyes of right-thinking members of the society and to equally destroy his business which took him more than 2 decades to build. He stated that he has done business with both local and international partners for more than 2 decades and have never been convicted of any crime.

He is also seeking an order mandating the Defendant to render unreserved written apology to the Claimant in two national dailies of wide circulation in Nigeria and to pay the Claimant the sum of One Billion Naira (N1, 000,000,000.00) as damages.

He further asked the court to grant an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Defendant, Chief Charles Robin Njoku, his agents, servants and privies from further writing, publishing, broadcasting, airing or causing to be published, broadcasted, aired or circulated the offensive and defamatory broadcast against the Claimant.