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Tag: policemen

  • 30,000 policemen for election duty

    No fewer than 30,000 officers and men of the Nigeria Police are to be deployed to Ekiti State during the July 14 governorship election.

    The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Bello Ahmed, gave the information while playing host to some online journalists at the command’s headquarters in Ado-Ekiti.

    Ahmed disclosed that the command had mapped out strategies to ensure hitch free governorship election, saying with effective from July 9, officers and men would begin to man the strategic locations in the state.

    Ahmed advised residents in the state to conduct themselves in a peaceful manner before, during and after the election, assuring them of safety of their lives and property.

    His words: “Robust security has been put in place come July 14th.  Not less than 30,000 policemen will be deployed and other logistics will be on ground. Our tactical teams are ready for the task ahead.

    “Effective from July 9, everything will take shape and everybody will be in their positions. All the threats analysis had been conducted. We are fully ready for the poll and if the election is to hold today, it just for us to press one or two buttons.

    “I want to encourage the people of Ekiti to be law abiding, to give us timely and credible information. I equally advise them to come out on election day to exercise their civic rights and responsibility to vote for candidate of their choice peacefully and retire back to their houses peacefully.”

    The state police chief disclosed that the recent killings witnessed in the state capital have been as a result of clashes between rival cult groups and not political killings as being peddled in some quarters.

    He said some of the suspected cultists have been arrested in connection with the killings adding that they would be charged to court upon completion of investigations.

    “We have done a lot and many of them have been arrested. It just cult related matters and not political matters.”

     

  • Policemen hail spokesman’s promotion

    Officers have hailed the promotion of Force Spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, to Acting Deputy Commissioner of Police (AG DCP).

    The policemen, who spoke to reporters yesterday, said Moshood’s appointment has filled the vacuum created after his predecessor, Don Awunah, was promoted to Commissioner of Police and posted out.

    One of them said: “The Office of the FPPRO should be held by a Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner of Police. That way, the occupant would function properly both internally and while relating with sister services.

    “I hail the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, for appointing Moshood acting DCP in charge of the public relations department.”

    Another senior officer noted that the police currently had the lowest ranking officer heading public relations department.

    “Check the ranks of those heading the public relations departments of all government security agencies and you will see that they are officers whose ranks are equivalent to Commissioners or Deputy Commissioners.

    “The Army has a Brig.-Gen as Director Public Relations for the navy, it’s a Commodore and Air Force public relations department is headed by an Air Vice Marshal (two-star General).

    “The Customs Service (NCS) has a Deputy Comptroller as head of the unit and same with the Immigration and Prison Services, while the Federal Road Safety Commissioner’s head of public relations is a Corps Commander. I see nothing wrong with Jimoh’s elevation.”

  • Suspected kidnappers kill three policemen

    … abduct expatriates

    Three policemen were on Wednesday killed and some expatriates whose identities are yet to be known were abducted by unidentified gun men along Sokoto-Bodinga road in Sokoto state.

    Eye witness account said the victims met their waterloo in the morning hours after an exchange of gun fire with police personnel along Bodinga road.

    It was gathered that security personnel were swiftly drafted to strategic locations and major streets for stop and search on vehicles coming in and outside the state.

    Read Also: Murder: Zakzaky taken to court in Kaduna amid tight security

    Reports also revealed that the kidnapped expatriates were working with an engineering firm,Triacta Nigeria Limited, the construction firm handling Sokoto – Jega – Koko Federal road project.

    However, the Police Public Relations Officer(PPRO), of the Command, DSP Cordelia Nwawe who confirmed the incident, said investigation was ongoing, assuring that soon the state police command will brief the press on the incident.

  • Businessman: policemen kidnapped my brother and me

    A Benin-based businessman, Uche Ezedike, yesterday  alleged that he and his younger brother were kidnapped by some policemen, who collected N130,000 from them before letting them off.

    Ezedike told The Nation yesterday that the accident happened in Onitsha, Anambra State on Sunday.

    He said the policemen, numbering about five, stopped his vehicle around 11:30am at Upper Iweka Bridge, while he and his brother were returning to Edo State from their home town in Imo.

    The policemen, he claimed,  flagged down their vehicle, asked where they were going and where they were from.

    “I told them we were returning to Benin City from Imo State. One of them demanded to search my boot, which he did and found just our clothes and shoes.

    “He then asked for my occupation and I told him that I am a businessman and that I sell tyres. He said I was lying that I looked like a fraudster and instantly pointed a gun at me and pushed me into my car.

    “He called one of his colleagues to point a gun too at my younger brother, who was on the steering and demanded the car key from my brother. They dragged my younger brother to the back seat, handcuffed us together and sped off into Onitsha town.

    “While one of them took over the steering, the other pointed a gun at my brother and. The man driving drove for almost 10 minutes. I asked where we were going but he shut me up that I will know when we got to the destination.

    “I became afraid and asked him why he was not taking us to the police station. I was begging them and my younger brother was crying. The driver later stopped on a very lonely road and demanded that I pay them N1,000,000. I told him that I do not have. I continued to beg them and told them that I was rushing to see my pregnant wife, who was to undergo surgery to remove fibroid that was growing alongside the baby in her womb.

    “They threatened to kill my younger brother at the spot if I did not give them the money they asked for. The threat was much that I had to beg them to allow me call my family or friends. They allowed me access to my phone and asked that I put it on speaker, which I did.

    “I called a friend for money, who asked me what was happening but I could not tell him because the one at the back was pointing his gun directly at me. My friend said he had only N30,000. I then called my wife and asked her for money but did not tell her what was happening. She said the only money with her was the money I gave her as deposit for the surgery.

    “The amount was N116,000 in her account, they demanded the money be transferred including the one from my friend. I asked how and one of them said he would call for account. He called and it was a woman’s voice. An account number was sent through his phone and I gave it to my wife through my brother’s Whatsapp. I also sent the account number to my friend.

    “My friend’s N30,000 transfer came in first and within five minutes my wife transferred N100,000 into the same account they gave. Within five minutes again, the woman called and told them she has received alerts

    “They told me that God has saved my brother and I. The one at the steering drove off again and after five minutes, I saw an expressway and they showed us how to go to Benin. They stopped, removed the handcuff and asked my brother to drive off immediately. It was like a dream to me and I imagined what other people might have passed through.”

    Contacted, Anambra State Police Command spokesperson, Nkiru Nwude appealed to the victim to report officially at the police division where the incident occurred.

    Nwude said: “I am not aware of this case. I do not think it was officially reported at a police station. It is an allegation and it would be wrong for me to say the culprits are policemen or not. But I can tell you that cases of indiscipline by our operatives have reduced since Commissioner of Police Garba Umar took over.

    “The best thing at the moment is for the victims to report officially so that investigation can commence. Since there was a bank transaction, tracking the culprits would be a lot easier.”

  • IG deploys policemen for Easter

    INSPECTOR-General (IG) Ibrahim Idris has ordered massive deployment of personnel throughout the country for crime prevention and control during the Easter celebration.

    A statement by the Force spokesman, ACP Jimoh Moshood, in Abuja yesterday said Idris had directed Assistant Inspectors-General of Police in charge of zonal commands and Police Commissioners nationwide to be on ground throughout the celebration to supervise and implement the security arrangements.

    Moshood said the deployment would cover places of worship, recreation centres, venues of celebration, other public places and private facilities.

    He noted that “consistent surveillance, intelligence gathering and continuous raid of criminal hideouts, black spots, flash and vulnerable points are already ongoing and will be sustained throughout the period”.

    “Vehicular and foot patrols and adequate visibility policing will also be embarked upon to guarantee safety of lives and property throughout the period,” the statement said.

    The spokesman implored the public to cooperate with the police highway patrol teams, the Special Anti-Robbery Squads and other police units deployed to prevent crime on highways and major roads across the country.

    He said the personnel were under instructions to be civil, polite but firm in ensuring the security and safety of travellers and other road users throughout the country.

    Moshood reiterated the assurance of the Police’s renewed commitment to ensure adequate safety of lives and property during the Easter period and beyond.

    “The IG, while wishing Christians across the country a happy Easter celebration, enjoins them to extol the virtues of Jesus Christ by propagating peace and love, irrespective of religious, ethnic or political inclination,” the spokesman added.

     

     

  • Policemen, students arraigned for ‘cultism’, ‘gunrunning’

    Two policemen and two students of the University of Uyo (UNIUYO) were among 17 suspects arraigned by the Akwa Ibom State Police Command for alleged cultism and gunrunning.

    The suspects were arraigned at an Uyo High Court presided over by Justice Archibong Archibong.

    They are facing charges of alleged involvement in cultism, illegal possession of firearms and others.

    This is happening barely two weeks after Governor Udom Emmanuel signed an order proscribing 33 cults.

    Police spokesman Odiko Macdon Ogbeche told The Nation in Uyo that 17 of the suspects, including two policemen, two students and a 29-year-old phone repairer at Ibom Plaza roundabout were among those prosecuted by the command.

    It was gathered that while one of the policemen was attached to Ibom International Airport, the other was a security aide to a lawmaker.

    The two students, it was learnt, are both in their second and third year as undergraduates.

    The suspects admitted being members of the proscribed Ku Klux Klaans (KKK) Confraternity.

    Justice Archibong said the offences contravened Section 6 of the Akwa Ibom State Internal Security Enforcement Law 2009 and Section 6 (1) of the Firearms Special Prohibition Act, 2004.

    He adjourned the case till May 3 for further hearing and cross-examination.

    The Military Joint Task Force (JTF) has arrested two suspects with firearms in Ukanafun Local Government.

    They led the JTF to their hideout in a forest at Ikpe community in Etim Ekpo where others were nabbed.

    The operatives killed 18 hoodlums, who attempted to escape.

  • I-G deploys mobile policemen to schools in Northeast

    Every school in the Northeast will henceforth be guarded by four policemen as part of the efforts to protect the students and staff from terror attack.

    But 10 policemen will offer protection to Yelwa Government Girls College, Maiduguri, according to the Inspector-General of Police Ibrahim Idris.

    The I-G said that five female and five male police details would be attached to the school.

    Idris yesterday visited Yelwa Government Girls College and Government College also in Maiduguri, during which he announced the new measure.

    Idris said the police were determined to end the spate of kidnappings in the region.

    He, therefore, appealed to the students and the managers of the schools to cooperate with the police personnel attached to their schools by reporting all suspicious characters to them for immediate action.

    The police boss urged them to shun all social vices and be law abiding to avoid jeopardising their future.

    He gave a personal donation of 20 bags of rice and a cow to the students of Government College Maiduguri.

    In their separate responses, the Principal of Government College, Mr Abba Gana, and that of Government Girls College, Hajia Bintu Abakura, commended the I-G for the visit.

    They both assured him of their support in reporting all suspicious cases to the police and lauded him for the initiative.

  • ‘31,652 policemen promoted in four years’

    No fewer than 31,652 police personnel have been promoted in the last four years, the Police Service Commission (PSC) has said.

    The commission said the figure increased from 2,652 promoted officers in 2013 to 10,223 in 2017.

    A statement in Abuja yesterday by the commission’s spokesman, Ikechukwu Ani quoted PSC’s chairman, Sir. Mike Okiro, as revealing the figures when he decorated three newly promoted officers serving in the commission to their new ranks.

    Okiro, while saying promotion was a way of enhancing the welfare of the officers, promised to ensure that promotions in the police were regular.

    The statement reads: “In the last four years, the commission has promoted 31,652 senior police officers.

    “From 2,652 officers promoted in 2013, the commission was able to promote 10,223 officers in 2017.”

    The newly promoted Officers are: DSP Joseph Ugwu Onaji, Personal Assistant to the Chairman who was promoted to the next rank of Superintendent of Police (SP); DSP Telfum Falle and ASP Ozoana Chidozie, who are serving in the commission’s police liaison office and who were promoted to SP and DSP.

    Okiro reminded the newly promoted officers that the promotion and higher ranks comes with higher responsibilities to the ideals of the Police and greater service to their fatherland.

  • Policemen attack The Nation reporter in Aba

    Policemen attack The Nation reporter in Aba

    About seven officers attached to the Imo State Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) yesterday in Aba, Abia State brutalised the Abia State correspondent of The Nation Newspapers, Sunny Nwankwo, tearing his cloth and injuring him.

    The incident happened in front of the Aba Area Command Headquarters.

    Nwankwo, who spoke from the hospital, said the SARS personnel attacked him with their AK-47 riffles, machetes and other dangerous weapons.

    He said: “I was going to office this morning (Wednesday) and on reaching Hospital road, a tricycle operator coming out from the command headquarters, hit my car as he tried to manoeuvre an oncoming car.

    “But instead of rebuking the tricycle operator, one of the policemen started shouting at me, calling me all sorts of names.

    “Initially I didn’t reply him, but when the abuse was too much, I told him to be civil and that he should have cautioned the tricycle rider, who I later discovered was one of them.

    “The policemen, whose mouths were oozing of alcohol, pounded on me and started hitting me with their AK-47 riffles, machetes and other weapons. They later drove off after injuring me and damaging my phone. One of them even corked his gun and threatened to shoot me.”

     

  • DPO, policemen, seven others held for ‘theft’

    DPO, policemen, seven others held for ‘theft’

    A Divisional Police Officer (DPO), two policemen and seven others have been arrested by men of Uzuakoli Vigilante group in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State for allegedly stealing property of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC).

    The DPO claims to be in charge of the railway police station in Umuahia.

    It was gathered that the suspects, whose names were still unknown as at last night, went to Uzuakoli and vandalised the NRC property. They were, however, arrested by the vigilance group members.

    Leader of Uzuakoli Vigilante group, Chiledum Onwubiko, said his members were patrolling the village last Saturday about 10.30am, when they saw a lorry with about ten men inside, including three armed policemen, heading towards their farm where the NRC packed some rails to replace damaged rail lines.

    Onwubiko said because of a last year incident when some of the rails were stolen by unknown persons, he suspected something fishy was going to happen, and so placed his men on alert.

    One of his men disguised and approached the lorry. On getting there, he realised the men were using oxygen cylinders to cut the rail lines into pieces and packing them into the lorry.

    One of the policemen who escorted the suspects, who serve at the Uzuakoli police station, identified as Stanley, told others to leave the scene, following suspicions that they had been found out.

    He said: “They hurriedly left with the rail lines they had packed inside the lorry, but before then, I had alerted by boys. My boys tried to stop them but they refused, and they were pursued to a point where they couldn’t escape anymore.

    “Stanley pleaded that we allow them to go because the DPO of the station knew of their mission. But we refused to allow them go and insisted that the DPO must come to confirm he was aware of their mission.”

    During interrogation, one of the policemen reportedly shot sporadically to scare their arresters but when this failed, he allegedly injured three of the vigilance members with the butt of his gun. They were rushed to the hospital.

    The police at Uzuakoli were alerted and they took the suspects and their loot to the police station, from where they were transferred to the Umuahia Area Command.

    Efforts to reach the Umuahia Police Area Commander Adaku Uche-Anya, and the spokesman Geoffrey Ogbonna, were unsuccessful.