A Federal High Court judge in Abuja, Justice Musa S. Liman, failed to appear in court on Monday to hear a motion seeking the release of activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore’s passport in a cybercrime case involving the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun.
Sowore, who arrived at the court with his legal team by 8:45 a.m., discovered that his case was listed as number two on the court’s docket.
However, after waiting for the judge to arrive, court staff later informed him that Justice Liman had travelled to Bauchi to handle a matter for which he had received a fiat.
No prior notice was given to either party or their legal representatives regarding the judge’s absence.
A source later told SaharaReporters that the judge’s absence was a “deliberate ploy to avoid hearing the motion”.
This marks the third time the judge has scheduled a hearing on Sowore’s motion only to be absent on the date of proceedings. On a previous occasion, Justice Liman was said to be attending a conference in Lagos.
The case stems from a cybercrime charge filed by the Nigeria Police Force over Sowore’s social media comments referring to Kayode Egbetokun as an “illegal IGP.”
As of the time of this report, no new date has been fixed for the hearing. It is also believed that Justice Liman will not return to hear the motion before proceeding on vacation.
Federal High Court judges will begin their vacation on Monday, July 28, and end on Tuesday, September 16. Normal court sittings are scheduled to resume on Wednesday, September 17.
Previous Disappearing Act
On June 25, Reporters reported that Liman had failed to appear in court on two occasions, especially to attend sessions scheduled to hear a fresh application for the release of Sowore’s passport, which the court had seized.
At the time, sources at the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) told SaharaReporters that the police had repeatedly refused to hand over the case file to AGF Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), despite several formal requests.
The hearing expected to consider Sowore’s application for the temporary release of his passport was stalled on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, as the judge was absent for the second time.
Similarly, on April 25, Reporters reported that Justice Liman’s absence had stalled proceedings in Sowore’s case to recover his passport.
Background
Sowore, who was granted bail on January 30, 2025, with a bond of N10 million and other conditions, including the surrender of his passport, had petitioned the court to temporarily release the document, specifying the number of days he would require it.
The police invited Sowore in January 2025 after he posted a video on social media alleging extortion by officers at a checkpoint near Lagos airport.
He honoured the invitation to the Force Intelligence Department in Abuja but was subsequently detained when he refused the bail conditions, which included surrendering his passport and providing a senior civil servant as surety.
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