Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Jibrin S. Okutepa, has taken Qatar Airways to the Federal High Court in Abuja, alleging what he described as sustained abuse, humiliation, and abandonment by the airline in an ordeal that reportedly left him stranded in both the Middle East and North America.
In the suit filed on January 19, 2026, Okutepa accused the airline of breach of contract, negligence, and “unconscionable and oppressive” conduct, claiming that Qatar Airways subjected him to hardship despite collecting payment for services it repeatedly assured him would be provided.
According to court documents, the senior lawyer said he purchased a business-class Abuja–Toronto–Abuja ticket to attend the 2025 International Bar Association (IBA) Annual Conference in Canada after receiving promotional emails from Qatar Airways. The promotions, he said, promised transit visa assistance for Doha, hotel accommodation during stopovers, and related travel support—assurances he relied upon in entering into a contract of carriage with the airline.
The suit stated that after payment, Qatar Airways requested documents to process the transit visa and later issued confirmations, including a Stopover for the Purpose of Connection (STPC) receipt detailing hotel reservations in Doha. Okutepa said these confirmations reinforced his belief that the airline had fulfilled its obligations. However, despite repeated assurances, the airline allegedly failed to process or provide the promised transit visa.
On October 29, 2025, Okutepa told the court that he was checked in without any issue at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, and boarded his Doha-bound flight after airline staff assured him that the transit visa would be ready on arrival. He said that assurance turned out to be false.
Upon landing in Doha, the SAN alleged that he was informed there was no transit visa on record for him, forcing him to remain overnight at the airport for about eight hours without access to the hotel accommodation earlier confirmed by the airline. He claimed he incurred over $500 in feeding and incidental expenses during what he described as degrading and avoidable suffering.
The suit further alleged that the airline’s treatment worsened during his return journey. After completing his engagement at the IBA conference in Toronto, Okutepa said Qatar Airways staff at Toronto Pearson International Airport refused to check him in for his return flight on November 10, 2025, again citing the absence of a transit visa—despite earlier assurances that visa processing was the airline’s responsibility.
He claimed that all pleas for assistance, including appeals to the airline’s station manager, were summarily rejected. When he requested an amendment to his ticket to avoid transiting through Doha, the airline allegedly demanded an additional $5,000. Upon his refusal to pay, Okutepa said he was denied boarding entirely and abandoned at the airport without alternative arrangements or support.
Stranded and with no assistance from the airline, the senior lawyer said he paid for an overnight stay at an airport hotel in Toronto before purchasing a new Ethiopian Airlines business-class ticket at a cost exceeding $3,600 to return to Nigeria.
In the suit, Okutepa accused Qatar Airways of negligence, wrongful denial of boarding, breach of duty of care, and unfair trade practices. He further alleged that the airline’s actions revealed a broader pattern of treating Nigerian passengers with “scorn, contempt and indignity,” in breach of international aviation standards and basic principles of corporate responsibility.
Among the reliefs sought are declaratory orders, a public apology to be published nationwide and on the airline’s website, refunds and special damages exceeding $7,000, ₦500 million in general damages, $500,000 in exemplary damages, interest at 21 per cent, and ₦50 million in legal costs.
He is also asking the court to compel Qatar Airways to publicly commit to improved customer care, adherence to international best practices, and responsible corporate conduct.
As of the time of filing, the suit stated that Qatar Airways had failed to respond to a formal pre-action demand letter issued by Okutepa’s legal team.
The case is expected to raise critical questions about airline accountability, the treatment of Nigerian passengers by international carriers, and the enforcement of consumer rights in cross-border air travel.
