Five policemen attached to the Edo State Police Command have been arrested for alleged abduction, extortion and harassment.
The policemen are Assistant Superintendent of Police Bonny Paul Onajite, Inspector Ehubarieme Wisdom, Inspector Arebame God’s Power, Corporal Mordi Philip and Corporal Okon Elvis.
This is coming after about 24 hours after the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, warned his men to stop extortion or face the music.
They were arrested alongside a Point of Sale (PoS) operator, Goodluck Jaja, Destiny Emmanuel, who was dismissed as Police Corporal and two commercial bus drivers, Samuel Nicholas and Etim Bright.
Spokesman for state Police Command, Eno Ikoedem, said the suspects operated along Teboga axis where they unlawfully stopped unsuspecting citizens, forcefully conveyed them within Benin City before taking them to the PoS operators to extort money from them under duress.
Ikoedem said the arrest followed complaints from the public alleging harassment, abduction, and extortion by individuals posing as police officers.
She said the criminal network was busted through sustained surveillance, technical intelligence, and coordinated operations by operatives of the Command.
Ikoedem added: “Those that are serving personnel are undergoing internal disciplinary procedures, including orderly room trials. Upon conclusion of these processes and the ongoing investigation, they will be arraigned before a court of competent jurisdiction to face the full weight of the law.
“The Command hereby calls on all victims who may have encountered or fallen prey to this organised criminal gang to come forward and assist the Police with useful information that will aid further investigation and prosecution.
“Furthermore, the Edo State Police Command uses this medium to strongly warn all POS operators and merchants to be wary of any individual, including persons in police uniform, who attempt to use their facilities for unlawful transactions or extortion. Any POS operator found to be complicit in such illegal activities will be arrested and prosecuted accordingly.”
