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The Rivers State Police Command said its operatives have arrested a Ghanaian national identified as Mr Samuel Frimpong for allegedly removing the roof of his tenant, Anozie Tochukwu, who resides at No. 7 Chief Chike Street, Mgbuoba, in the Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the state.
It was gathered that the landlord resorted to the action because his Nigerian tenant failed to vacate the apartment after the expiration of the two-week grace period.
Narrating his ordeal, the tenant, Mr Tochukwu, said he moved into Mr Frimpong’s house in January 2024 and has consistently paid his rent.
The distraught tenant, however, said that in late 2025, his landlord served him with a notice to renovate the apartment and asked him not to renew the lease, which will expire in January 2026.
“On the first of February 2026, I showed him the transaction payment that I made for a new apartment and pleaded for 14 days, which will elapse on the 14th of February, to relocate.
“But to my greatest surprise, at about 8:02 AM, on February 3, 2026, my wife called to inform me that the landlord (Mr Frimpong) had de-roofed my apartment. A few hours later, it started raining heavily, and all my property, documents, and certificates were exposed to the rain. My pregnant wife and my two kids, two years old and three years old respectively, were exposed to,” he lamented.
Mr Tochukwu continued, “Currently, all my properties worth 25 Million Naira got damaged inclusive of 43 inches Maxi television, a deep freezer, chandelier, set of chairs, NYSC certificate, my degree certificate, my professional certifications, books, clothes, foodstuff, 4×6 foam and bed frame, baby medications, pregnancy medications, my wife’s certificates, children birth certificate, my shoes, children shoes and wife shoes, and my saving box of close to nine months of saving is missing. My ceiling fan is missing,” Mr Tochukwu said.
It was gathered that detectives from the Ozuoba Police Division in Obio/Akpor, Rivers State, arrested the landlord on Wednesday, February 3, 2026, after the matter was reported.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed Mr Frimpong’s arrest, saying the matter is under investigation.
Iringe-Koko, a Chief Superintendent of Police, said, “Yes, I can confirm. The landlord has been arrested. He is with us (the police); the investigation is ongoing. He may be arraigned after the investigation.”
Meanwhile, a legal practitioner with the Human Rights Organization, ‘Lawyers Watch for Justice International Initiative’, Raymond Okocha, described the incident as ‘grave injustice’ and a ‘breakdown’ of the rule of law.
Okocha noted that the landlord took the law into his own hands in the most barbaric way, without serving a statutory Notice to Quit, without a Seven-day Notice of Intention to Recover Premises, and without any Order of Court, proceeded to unlawfully de-roof the tenant’s apartment where he lives with his pregnant wife and two children.
He stated, “Under the Nigerian law, ‘self-help’ is alien. You cannot evict a tenant by destroying the property. To evict a human being, you must follow due process through our courts. By removing that roof, the landlord has not only breached the Recovery of Premises Law but also committed a flagrant violation of the family’s fundamental right to dignity.
“This is a clear case of malicious damage and psychological abuse. We are calling for immediate justice. We want the law to take its full course. Justice for Mr Tochukwu is justice for all of us,” the lawyer said.
