We were sent by IGP, brags Policeman accused of rights violations

Taiwo Jimoh 

 

IGP

A Lagos based Risk Analysts and Advisor, Mr. Clifford Chukwunoyerem, has accused some policemen attached to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command of intimidation and threat to his life.

 Just as Chukwunoyerem is complaining of the conduct of the police team, so also is the traditional ruler of Itu community in Ezinihite Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State, His Royal Highness, Ben Adindu. Adindu alleged that he and his daughter were not just harassed, his throne was also desecration. Both men, who said that the conduct of the police team was unprofessional, alleged that the team was working in connivance with their political enemies identified as Osuagwu and Eberendu.

 

The police team caught in the middle of this political squabble is led by a policeman identified as Sunday Agboji, attached to the FCT Police Command.

Agboji, while responding to allegations of unprofessional conduct and human rights violations, said that everything he had done was on the instruction of the Inspector-General-of-Police (IGP), Usman Alkali Baba.

The dispute in the community is over traditional rulership and town’s union presidency.

The community is divided into two factions with each faction loyal to a claimant to the traditional ruler. Adindu is alleged to have the official staff of office as a traditional ruler of the Itu autonomous community, bestowed on him by the Imo State government, while his supposed opposition, Mr. Eberendu, also insisted that he was elected by the community even though he doesn't have the staff of office.

On the other hand is Chukwunoyerem, President of Itu Development Union recognized by Adindu. Osuagwu is former President of the town union, but is loyal to Eberendu.

The problem is that on Easter Sunday 2020, Chukwunoyerem, as the President of the town Union called a meeting with chairs and tables and musical and public address system set up, and people gathered.

A gang of armed miscreants came and opened fire, set the chairs, tables and equipment on fire. They then doused Chukwunoyerem with petrol and attempted to set him on fire, but he narrowly escaped.

Chukwunoyerem wrote a petition to Zone 9 Umuahia, Abia State and the assailants were arrested. 

It was also alleged that police investigators, despite having gathered evidence of the involvement of the arrested assailants and their sponsors, refused to charge the matter to court.

Chukwunoyerem then approached the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), a human rights organisation, requesting it to write to the Assistant Inspector-General (AIG) Zone 9, and to direct that the case be followed, with the suspects charged to court based on evidence gathered

RULAAC wrote to the AIG and had the petition published. The accused persons were angry that RULAAC published the petition asking for their prosecution. They called and complained and later wrote to RULAAC through their lawyer, alleging defamation, asking for apologies and threatening to sue for libel.

The Executive Director of RULAAC, Okechukwu Nwanguma, who has been following the case since the petition got to RULAAC, said: “They did not sue, but instead, months later, decided to hire an officer at FCT command, who pretended to be acting on the IGP's directives to harass the petitioner and the traditional ruler. That's how they invaded the traditional ruler’s palace in Mbaise and went to the petitioners’ office at Lekki without a warrant. There is no record with the local police about the operations which makes the operations illegal. When confronted about lack of warrant, the police team left and later sent Chukwunoyerem an invitation via WhatsApp which did not state the alleged offence. They also sent a copy to me via WhatsApp. These acts of harassment and the irregular invitation were what made RULAAC to write to the IGP complaining about the unprofessional conduct of the officers.”

Chukwunoyerem said after he had waited without getting justice from the AIG Zone 9, Command, suspecting that the investigating team at Zone 9, Umuahia, by their conduct and posture, might have been compromised by the accused persons, approached RULAAC. He complained to RULAAC about the unprofessional conducts of the policemen from the FCT Command, Abuja, led by Agboji.

Nwanguma wrote a petition to the IGP, requesting him to order investigation into the conduct of the police officers whose conduct was unbecoming.

It was gathered that one of those accused in the petition, Osuagwu, through his lawyers, wrote to Nwanguma, asserting that the petition addressed to the AIG by RULAAC and published in the media was malicious and defamatory and targeted at his reputation.

But RULAAC, through its lawyers replied and told Osuagwu and his cohort that it was not shifting ground on its call for the prosecution of all suspects involved in the alleged attempted murder, unlawful possession of firearms, terrorism financing, arson and breach of the public peace as contained in the complainant's petition to Zone 9 Umuahia.

Nwanguma said that besides sending threats through anonymous sources, the suspects also resorted to hiring the services of some willing police officers at the FCT Command which has no jurisdiction or any business whatsoever intervening in a matter clearly outside its jurisdiction, to harass and intimidate Chukwunonyerem and the monarch.

Nwanguma stated: “On November 25, Sunday Agboji stormed Chukwunonyerem's office at Lekki, Lagos, accompanied by other officers to arrest him, but he was not in the office at the time they arrived. When Chukwunonyerem's colleagues in the office inquired if they had a warrant, they declined to answer or present any. A female police officer in the team identified as Jane Ettah, called Chukwunonyerem through Agboji's phone number and asked him to report at FCT office on November 29, 2021. It was also apparent that they did not register their presence at any police station in Lagos State- as required by police procedure, since they came from outside jurisdiction - all the way from FCT police command Abuja.”

It was gathered that a team of about 10 masked police officers who came in a Toyota bus without a registration number, with the inscription 'River Joy,' later found to have been led by the same Agboji of FCT Police Command, had on October 27, 2021, invaded Adindu’s palace in Itu, fully armed, in plain clothes with their faces covered and forcibly entered and ransacked his palace.

Adindu reported: “They neither presented any warrant nor explained their mission before forcing their way in,                                                                                            and ransacking my palace. My daughter and I were able to recognize Nwagwu also masked, who led the police team to the palace. Nwagwu is the same ringleader of the people that attacked Chukwunonyerem in Itu on April 5, 2021, and is currently among those facing five counts of a criminal offence at the Ezinihitte High Court, along with his co-indicted gang members.”

Adindu further informed that one of the female police officers in the invading team dragged his daughter through the kitchen door, took pictures of his compound, official vehicle and ransacked his palace.

Adindu further recalled: “I put a call to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Ezinihitte Police Division, who said that there were no records of any security personnel from outside jurisdiction that called to his office for any such operations. I also contacted the Area Commander, Ezinihite, who also did not know about the mission of the invading police team. I later called the AIG Zone 9 Umuahia, the Ezinihitte Local Government Area Chairman and Councillors. The invading police team left following interventions from the calls I made. The leader of the team, Sunday Agboji, later dropped a telephone number, and claimed that they were sent by the IGP. On that same day, the same team also went to Chukwunoyerem’s house in the village, but met everywhere locked.”

Chukwunoyerem on his part said that the suspects by mode of operations might have come on an abduction mission since they didn’t report to the police hierarchy in Ezinihitte before going straight to ransack the palace without warrant.

When our correspondent called Agboji to hear his side of the incident, he denied intimidating, harassing or threatening Chukwunonyerem. He explained that his team was working on a directive from the IGP, following a petition against him and others named in a petition.

Contrary to allegations that the team didn’t book at any police formation, Agboji insisted that they made an entry at the Lagos State Police Command, before heading to   Chukwunonyerem.

Agboji further explained: “One Oliver wrote a petition to the IGP and the IGP referred the petition to the Commissioner of Police. We are only inviting them to come and respond to the petition.”

Agboji also denied allegations of working with some men to illegally raid the palace of Adindu.

When the FCT Command Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Adeh Josephine, was contacted on why police personnel from FCT went after cases in Imo and Lagos states, where there are capable police formation, she replied that the police team has a right to operate in any part of the country.

She asked: “Which of the departments at Lagos State Police Command said that the policemen didn't book before going on their operations? I will have to confirm from the Command’s spokesperson and get back to you.”

But she is yet to get back to our correspondent as at the time of filing in the report.