Tuesday, March, 17 2026 - The Anambra State Police Command has detained six officers of the Okpoko Police Division in Onitsha over the alleged extortion of N200,000 from a victim through a Point of Sale operator.
Their detention followed a viral video in which the wife of
the victim narrated how her husband, a drink seller, was allegedly harassed,
handcuffed and forced to part with money after being stopped by some policemen
while returning from the Relief Market, where he had gone to purchase drinks
with his bus.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the incident occurred around the
busy Upper Iweka area of the Onitsha–Awka–Enugu Expressway over the weekend.
According to the victim’s wife in the trending video, her
husband was intercepted under the Upper Iweka flyover by the officers, who
demanded the vehicle’s documents, which she said he presented and were found to
be valid.
She alleged that despite the documents being in order, the
officers questioned why the bus was painted white and directed him to meet
their “Oga” inside their patrol vehicle.
The woman further claimed that when her husband approached
the vehicle, the officers allegedly surrounded him, handcuffed him, seized his
phone and drove him to an unknown destination where he was accused of being a
thief and pressured to pay N500,000 for his release.
She said the victim, who was frightened and confused during
the incident, was eventually forced to transfer N200,000 through a PoS operator
allegedly invited by the officers before he was released.
Another voice-over in the video alleged that the officers
accompanied the victim to the PoS operator, where the money was transferred to
an undisclosed account, claiming the officers routinely forced other victims to
pay similar amounts.
Reacting to the development, the Anambra State Police
Command confirmed that it had intercepted the video and commenced an
investigation into the allegations.
In a statement issued on Monday, the command’s spokesperson,
SP Tochukwu Ikenga, said the Commissioner of Police in the state, CP Ikioye
Orutugu, had ordered the detention of the six officers allegedly involved
pending the outcome of ongoing investigations.
Ikenga said the officers include two Assistant
Superintendents of Police and four Inspectors.
He added that the money allegedly collected from the victim
had been returned, describing the development as a serious indictment and
evidence of unprofessional conduct by the officers.
“The Commissioner of Police, Anambra State Command, CP
Ikioye Orutugu, has ordered the detention of the six officers allegedly
involved in the incident pending the outcome of ongoing investigations,” the
statement read.
“The officers include two Assistant Superintendents of
Police and four Inspectors of Police.
“Meanwhile, senior officers connected to the incident have
been queried, while statements from the other ranks involved have been taken
under caution in line with established police investigative procedures.
“The Command has also initiated steps to arrest the alleged
PoS operator in Onitsha, whose involvement suggests possible conspiracy in the
incident.
“Furthermore, through the Divisional Police Officer, Okpoko
Division, the Command invites and awaits the victim involved in the complaint
to come forward to provide additional testimony to aid the investigation and
guide further disciplinary action.”
Ikenga assured members of the public that the command was
treating the matter with the seriousness it deserved, adding that further
developments would be communicated.
0 Comments