Tenant and Lawyer Clash Over Legal Services Not Delivered

A tenant in Lagos, Medinat Oyeleke, has accused a lawyer, Jide Zaid, of taking N345,000 from her to handle complaints about harassment, burglary, and property damage at her home, but not providing the legal services they agreed on.

Medinat spoke with PUNCH Metro reporters on Monday. She said she hired Zaid on October 6, 2025, after facing several issues at her residence. She claimed the lawyer prepared a petition and letters for some tenants and the caretaker, but those documents were not sealed and were ignored.

Zaid denied the claims. He called Medinat’s accusations false and accused her of trying to blackmail him. He insisted he completed the legal work for which she paid and said he had documents to prove it.

Medinat reported that her room was burgled while she was away, and a gas cylinder and gold jewellery were stolen. She also said a tenant damaged her door, which allowed others to break into her room and take her belongings.

She added that poor renovation work at the property caused a pipe in the wall to burst, damaging her electrical appliances, including two laptops, clippers, and blenders. Medinat also accused some tenants of smoking or urinating behind her window and causing other nuisances.

The tenant said she filed a petition with the State Criminal Investigation Department over a defamation claim against the caretaker, Akeem Aluko. She accused him of telling her fiancé that she had HIV.

She said this allegation led to problems in her relationship. Medinat expressed dissatisfaction with Zaid’s handling of her case. She suspected he compromised his position after allegedly meeting some people she complained about. The last time they spoke, on December 2, 2025, the lawyer denied letting her down.

According to her, Zaid said, “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.”

Medinat reported Zaid to the Nigerian Bar Association and filed a formal petition on February 12, 2026. She said the NBA secretary, Samson Oyebisi, promised to get back to her, adding that she mainly wanted her N345,000 refunded.

She also claimed her attempts to get police help over the issues at the compound did not work. She said N10,000 was collected at the Ilupeju Police Station for her complaint. Later, she was allegedly asked for N200,000 at the State CID before the suspected offenders could be caught.

In response, Zaid said Medinat first asked him to write letters to her neighbours and the caretaker about harassment and disturbances. He claimed he delivered the letters and that Medinat pointed out the rooms of the involved tenants to his clerk.

Zaid also mentioned that Medinat instructed him to petition the Area C Police Command about her neighbours. He prepared this petition after receiving his fee. The police then directed him to send it to the Area D Police Command because Mushin falls under its area. He said the petition was dated November 21, 2025.

Before he could write another petition for Area D, Medinat sent him a long WhatsApp message accusing him of betraying her by taking money from her neighbours and not acting on her orders. Zaid claimed he stopped replying to her messages, which he said later totaled about 2,000.

Zaid denied an accusation that he sought sexual favours from Medinat, asking if she had any proof of such a request. “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 added that Medinat had made similar claims against him at the NBA secretariat in Ikeja, but said the complaint was dismissed due to lack of evidence. He maintained that all allegations against him were false.

Medinat, however, insisted that Zaid did not provide the legal services she paid for and just wanted her N345,000 back. The different stories could not be verified by PUNCH Metro at the time of this report.