Tenant, lawyer bicker over alleged failed legal service delivery - Punch Newspapers

A Lagos-based tenant, Medinat Oyeleke, has accused a lawyer, Jide Zaid, of collecting N345,000 from her to handle complaints bordering on alleged harassment, burglary, property damage and other disputes at her residence, but failing to deliver the legal services she said they agreed upon. Medinat, who spoke with PUNCH Metro correspondents on Monday, said she engaged Zaid on October 6, 2025, after a series of incidents at the compound prompted her to seek legal intervention. She said the lawyer prepared a petition and a letter to some tenants and the caretaker, but the documents were allegedly not sealed and were subsequently disregarded. However, Zaid denied the allegations, describing Medinat’s claims as false and accusing her of attempting to blackmail him. He maintained that he carried out the legal assignments for which she paid him and said he had documents to support his claim. Medinat alleged that her room was burgled while she was away, with a gas cylinder and gold jewellery stolen. She also accused a tenant of damaging her door, which she said was subsequently used by some persons to gain access to her room and steal her belongings. She further alleged that poor renovation work at the property caused a pipe embedded in the wall to burst, damaging some of her electrical appliances, including two laptops, clippers and blenders. She also accused some occupants of smoking or urinating behind her window and engaging in other activities she described as nuisances. The tenant said she also petitioned the State Criminal Investigation Department over an allegation of defamation against the caretaker, Akeem Aluko, accusing him of telling her fiancé that she had HIV. She said the allegation contributed to the breakdown of their relationship. Medinat said she became dissatisfied with Zaid’s handling of the matter and began to suspect that he had compromised his position after allegedly meeting some of the people she had complained about. She said the last time they spoke, on December 2, 2025, the lawyer denied compromising his professional duty. According to her, Zaid told her, “Be patient, I am already talking to them at Area C. Don’t be too anxious. I don’t like your presumption that they came to beg me. For what? Am I a policeman? I’m a professional, and I cannot compromise my loyalty to you. Don’t say that again.” Twin fires destroy Lagos multi-million-naira goods CNG cuts tricycle fuel costs by over 70% — NURTW chieftain 2027: Akiolu backs Tinubu, renews Lagos special status demand Medinat said she subsequently reported Zaid to the Nigerian Bar Association and submitted a formal petition on February 12, 2026. She said the NBA secretary, Samson Oyebisi, told her he would get back to her on the matter, adding that her main demand was for the lawyer to refund her N345,000. She also alleged that her attempts to obtain police intervention over the incidents at the compound yielded no result. According to her, N10,000 was allegedly collected at the Ilupeju Police Station in connection with her complaint, while she was later allegedly asked for N200,000 at the State CID before the suspected offenders could be apprehended. Responding further, Zaid said Medinat initially instructed him to write letters to her neighbours and caretaker over alleged harassment, sexual advances and disturbance of her peace. He said the letters were served and that Medinat identified the rooms of the affected tenants to his clerk. Zaid also said Medinat instructed him to petition the Area C Police Command over the dispute with her neighbours and that he prepared the petition after receiving his fee. He said the command subsequently directed him to forward it to the Area D Police Command because Mushin falls within its jurisdiction, adding that the petition was dated November 21, 2025. The lawyer said before he could prepare another petition for the Area D command, Medinat sent him a lengthy WhatsApp message accusing him of betraying her by collecting money from her neighbours and failing to act on her instructions. He said he stopped responding to her messages, which he alleged later numbered about 2,000. Zaid also denied an allegation that he sought sexual favours from Medinat, asking whether she had any evidence of such a demand. “She has a file here. You can come to my office right away. I will show you the job I did, and for which I am paid,” he said. He further alleged that Medinat had made similar allegations against him at the NBA secretariat in Ikeja, but claimed that the complaint was dismissed for lack of evidence. He reiterated that all the allegations against him were false. Medinat, however, maintained that Zaid failed to provide the legal services for which she paid him and insisted that she only wanted her N345,000 refunded. The competing accounts could not be independently verified by PUNCH Metro as of the time of filing this report. Kindly share this story:

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