‘How weed smoking sergeant blinded me over N1000 bribe’

Patience Ogbo

When Mr. Cyprian Ibeneme left home on September 22, to Apapa Wharf to clear a car, he was full of life and hope.

But before that day ended however, Ibeneme had almost lost sight in one of his eyes and has today become a burden to his family.

He explained that his trouble started after he had cleared the car and was returning from Wharf, with Mrs. Nkiruka Umeononihu, his sister-in-law.

They ran some into some policemen. The men allegedly demanded for N1000, which he told them he didn’t have.

Angry, one of the policemen, later identified as Sergeant Salimu Halimu, pounced on him with a pipe, hitting him repeatedly on his eyes, forehead and other parts of his body until he became a bloodied mess.

Presently, Ibeneme urgently needs a surgery to save him from going blind, but the money is just not available.

He said: “I lost my sight after a policeman, sergeant Halimu Salimu attached to the Trinity Police Station, Lagos State, flogged me mercilessly with a rubber pipe.”

Umeononihu, who was in the car with Ibeneme, also alleged that she was assaulted and stripped by the same Sergeant  Salimu after their refusal to give the demanded bribe. She revealed that the policemen were on ‘Stop and Search’ duty along Coconut bus stop.

Desperate for help and intervention, Ibeneme sought the assistance of a lawyer, Barrister Sarah Unobe.

Unobe is the Executive Director of International Centre for Human Rights Nonviolence and Safety Awareness.

Unobe had petitioned the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Edgal Imohimi over the matter.

Ibeneme recalled: “I was coming from Tin-Can Port, Apapa with a cleared Toyota Sienna, 2004 model when we ran into the policemen. They were at Coconut bus stop, Ajegunle axis. They flagged us down. The sergeant, who was very drunk and smelling of weed, requested that I give him some money as a bribe before he would allow me to drive pass, I declined. We gathered that the policemen usually collect N1000 from vehicles cleared from the wharf.

“Salimu insisted that he wouldn’t let us go unless we settle him and his boys. He became very aggressive and used the pipe in his hands to hit the side mirror on the driver’s side of the car and the rear bumper of the vehicle. I opened my door to find out why he was trying to damage the vehicle.

“He immediately slammed the pipe on my forehead. I tried to cover my forehead with my hands, but he continued to hit me. The pains were unbearable. Salimu hit my left eye with the pipe. I ran for safety to one of the kiosks in the area, trying to escape him and hit pipe. But he was like a man possessed. He chased and continued to hit me. There was blood everywhere. My head, face and chest.”

Umeononihu takes over the narration: “When I saw the way the sergeant was hitting Ibeneme with his pipe and with all that blood rushing, I rushed over to plead with him to stop the assault. Rather than listen to me, he started dragging my handbag. He suddenly pulled at my waist belt, leaving me naked. That was how I started looking for what to use to cover myself. He beat me up with the belt. I lost my jewelry and other documents in the process.

“I called one of the port’s security officials. I explained to him what was happening. He asked to speak with the sergeant. I handed the phone to Salimu. On taking the phone from me, Salimu became more aggressive. He said that I reported him to a higher officer, that he would show us he was from Jukun in Kogi State.

“He said that he would use his power as an officer to teach us the lesson of our lives. At a point in his aggressive attack, one of his colleagues came and that I was not scared of an armed policeman. That statement made Salimu to whip out his gun, pointed it at me and said that he was going to shoot me. I told him that he would have to explain to people his reason for shooting me after I might have died.”

While this drama was going on, another policeman came to tell Umeononihu that he was from Trinity Police Station, that he had been instructed to bring Umeononihu and Ibeneme to the station.

When they got to the station, Umeononihu said that they found the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), Mr. Oni Abayomi, in the midst of other policemen, smoking and drinking.

She said: “This man, who calls himself a DPO asked me to narrate what happened. He also asked the sergeant to narrate his story. The sergeant claimed that we were beating him. I pleaded with the DPO that he should go to the scene of the incident to find out the truth. Some policemen went to the scene and returned to say that truly Salimu attacked Ibeneme and I. He equally left me half naked. They insisted Ibeneme makes a statement, which he couldn’t because of his swollen hands and eyes. Blood was all over his head and hands. I wrote the statement on his behalf. Around 4pm, they gave us police report to go to the hospital. We went and ever since then, Ibeneme had been receiving medical treatment from NATAFOD Hospital. He is kept under compulsory bed rest, but the police had not cared enough to visit him.”

The lawyer of Ibeneme and Umeononihu demanded a compensation of N5million. The DPO said that he had initially wanted to give N500, 000 to assist with Ibeneme’s medical bills, but wouldn’t anymore, because he felt the injured party wanted to make money out of the situation. The lawyer reminded the DPO that the family of the injured man had already spent more than N500, 000 since the incident. Till date, the police are yet to support Ibeneme in anyway.

Umeononihu said: “Uptill this moment, the Ophthalmologist handling the treatment of Ibeneme advised that surgery on the left eye would have to take place on November 2018. The medical treatment and bed rest will continues till the eye is fit for him to move around.

The man’s left eye has not regained sight because of lack of money to pay outstanding bills and continue with his treatment. Lack of transportation cost to the hospital has also been an impediment to the eyes recovery. The family and children are all suffering as a result of his condition. The children school fees had not been paid, and even his wife that just put to bed is yet to pay her medical bills. She delivered on November 4, 2018.”

Unobe in the petition to Imohimi stated: “In view of the gross human rights violations committed by the Sergeant and the attempt to cover up his illegal act by the DPO, we demand as follows; a public apology to the victims/ survivors of these heinous attack. Ensure that the perpetrators of these illegal acts be made to face the full wrath of the law. Settlements of all hospital bills of the victims /survivors. One hundred million naira compensation for the personal injury, disgrace, humiliation, threat to lives and other general damages.”

It was gathered that Imohimi had directed police detectives at the State Criminal Intelligence Investigations Department (SIID), Panti, Yaba, to carry out thorough investigation on the matter.