A landlord, Omole Gabriel, a businessman in Ibadan has dragged his former tenant, Sharafat Ganiyu, before the Mapo Customary court for damaging three doors before moving out of the apartment.
The landlord claimed that Ganiyu, who has been a tenant for four years, moved out of his house in June 2017, but locked up the two rooms he rented.
“His rent expired in March 2017, but he did not move out until June. When moving out, he locked up the two rooms he rented and refused to drop the keys.
“I took the matter to the police station, and he was ordered to open the doors and drop the keys.
“While doing this, he destroyed three doors in the apartments, and has refused to repair or replace them.”
The landlord further stated that despite the police ordering Ganiyu to replace the destroyed doors, he has refused to do so after several months, causing him to lose prospective tenants who had indicated interest in the apartment.
“It was not until last month that I had to use my personal money to repair the three doors, which cost me a sum of N28,000.
“Since he left the apartment in June, no one has rented the rooms, making me lose N60,000 in the last one year.
The landlord prayed the court to order the respondent to pay his rent arrears which cost N15,000 and also refund the N28,000 he spent in replacing the doors.
The respondent, however, claimed not to have locked up the doors at the point of vacating the apartment. He, however, admitted to destroying three doors.
He further stated that he had already paid a sum of N5,000 to the landlord months after he vacated the apartment.
The president of the court, Ademola Odunade, ordered the respondent to pay the sum of N10,000 to the landlord to cover the balance of his arrears while pleading with the landlord to let go of the sum he spent in replacing the doors.
