Following the Delta State government’s directive that anyone caught demanding unlawful payment of development fee, popularly known as “deve”, from a property developer should be arrested and prosecuted, two young men have been arraigned before a Magistrate Court in Warri over the crime.
The arraignment came amid a renewed crackdown on illegal levies in Delta State.
The suspects, Mr. Irikefe Ajueyitsi and Mr. Abubakar Nasiru, were brought before Chief Magistrate E. M. Sowho at Magistrate Court 1, Warri, on a two-count charge bordering on illegal demand and breach of peace.
The developer, Pastor Fred Aghedo, said the demand for development fee prompted him to file a petition with the police.
Prosecuting counsel from the Uvwie Area Command of the Nigerian Police Force, ASP Dicko Wakama, told the court that the accused persons, alongside others still at large, committed the offence on March 12, 2026, at 3rd Marine Quarter Road, Warri.
He alleged that the defendants demanded “deve” from Pastor Fred Aghedo in relation to construction activities on his property.
According to the prosecution, the act contravenes Section 13(1) of the Delta State Public and Private Properties Protection Law, 2018, and is punishable under Section 13(2) of the same law.
ASP Wakama further informed the court that the accused persons also engaged in conduct likely to cause a breach of peace by creating nuisance on the said property.
The offence, he noted, is punishable under Section 249(d) of the Criminal Code, Cap C21, Volume 1, Laws of Delta State of Nigeria, 2006.
However, the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In her ruling, Chief Magistrate Sowho granted bail to the accused persons and adjourned the case to May 20, 2026, for hearing.
Narrating his ordeal, Pastor Aghedo told the court that the suspects and others allegedly stopped him and a tractor he had hired for land development at the site, insisting that work could not proceed unless he paid the demanded “deve”.
