LAGOS, Nigeria, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- A lawyer for a comic actor in Nigeria said he will sue government authorities for holding the actor 24 days after his arrest on drug-trafficking suspicion.
Babatunde Omidina, who is known as the comedian Baba Suwe, was arrested Oct. 12 at Murtala Mohammed International Airport after a body scan showed what looked like drugs in his stomach.
But the BBC reported the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency admitted he had failed to excrete any drugs and he was released in Lagos.
His lawyer, Bamidele Aturu, told Vanguard Saturday he would seek monetary damages in the suit.
"Citizens' rights are inviolable. Therefore those in authority must do everything not to abridge or violate the right of the Nigerian citizen," Aturu said.
He said the agency had shown contempt for the country's laws.
"They kept him for 24 days without getting any evidence and that in itself constitutes a very gross violation of our constitution," Aturu said. "You can't arrest a person for this long period without evidence."
Omidina acts in English and Yoruba language films, often playing a befuddled butler or security guard.
