Friday, February 7, 2025 - The Commissioner of Police in Cross River State, Augustine Grimah has identified and arrested some policemen who reportedly manhandled and robbed innocent members of the public last week.
Following complaints the by Archibong Hashbury Efefiom about how the
policemen robbed and threatened his friend by the policemen who was visiting
Calabar, the state capital, the commissioner invited the victim.
The victim was able to identify the affected policemen involved and
ordered them to immediately refund the N70,000 they forced the victim to
transfer at a POS to them.
This would be the second time in recent times that the CP would
intervene in similar situation.
In the recent case, the victim narrated how the policemen whisked him
and forcibly had him transfer N70,000 to them in the dead of. night and at
gunpoint.
“On Wednesday, January 19th, 2025, at 8 PM after a day of working from
home. I was standing in front of my street when two vehicles pulled up in front
of me. The occupants called me to approach them. Given that it was dark and
some of the individuals were wearing masks, I hesitated because I couldn’t
identify who they were.
“Suddenly, one of them got out of the vehicle and insisted on searching
me. I resisted, as they had not stated what I was being accused of or why I was
being approached. Their next move was to try to force me into the back of a
Hilux van. I again resisted, as they had not clearly explained the reason for
their actions.
“As the situation escalated, more police officers emerged from the
vehicles, and they began hitting and slapping me repeatedly in the face. I was
eventually shoved into one of the vehicles—the Hilux. While in transit, the
officers stopped to pick up random individuals from the street. At this point,
I was handcuffed to one of these strangers.
“Once we arrived at the police station, we were ordered to get out of
the vehicle and sit on the floor. Our phones were confiscated and placed on a
table. The officers then started threatening me, questioning why I had resisted
them. Some of their threats included ensuring my “disappearance” for a month
and forcibly taking me away from the station.
“As time passed, the other people who had been picked up along the road
began talking to different officers and, eventually, they were all released.
After a while, one officer approached me and told me to write a statement. He
practically guided me through the process of writing the statement, which I
did, clearly explaining the events that had transpired.
“One of the policemen then demanded that I unlock my phones, and he
began going through them. Shortly after, the officer who had been helping me
with the statement informed me that I needed to pay 200,000 naira if I wanted
to be released. I told him that I didn’t have that amount, and after some
back-and-forth, the figure was reduced to 70,000 naira.
“They instructed me to wait inside the Hilux, and I was driven from the
State CID to Barack Road. The officers stopped at a shop, where I was escorted
to a man who facilitated the transfer of the money via a POS machine. I was
charged an additional 2,800 naira as a transaction fee, and in total, I
transferred 72,800 naira to the man. In return, I was given 70,000 naira in
cash, which I handed over to the police officer in the vehicle.
“Once the officer counted the money to confirm the total, they finally
dropped me off at Mayne Avenue, near Atu, stating that it would be easier for
me to find transport home from that location.”
A social activist and publisher, Agba Jalingo who facilitated the
meeting between the CP and the victim, commended the CP for his the prompt
intervention.
He described the action of the police as impunity.
“I want to reiterate that this approach is far better than anyone taking
laws into their hands by molesting security men under any guise, when these
sorts of things happen.
“This process of correcting these atrocious acts may take longer but it
is always a better route.”
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