Police order trial of four officers for extorting robbery suspect of CFA350,000
Four policemen are to be arrested and tried on the orders of Lagos police boss Edgal Imohimi.
The officers, identified as Inspector Amiete, Sergeant Gbemunu Samuel, Sergeant Afolabi Oluwaseun and Corporal Adigun Omotayo, were said to have partaken in the extortion of a robbery suspect.
Police had arrested Theodore Ifunanya for his alleged involvement in armed robbery, but he was exonerated afterwards.
By the time Theodore was declared innocent, the officers allegedly refused to return a sum of CFA350,000 which was seized from him upon his arrest.
Police spokesperson Chike Oti said on Wednesday that the officers attached to the Ijanikin Police Division face stiff punishment for their shoddy handling of the case.
“The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Edgal Imohimi, has ordered the arrest and trial of four policemen attached to the Ijanikin Division for an alleged corrupt practice and shoddy investigation,” Oti’s statement read.
“The officers, Inspector Amiete, Sergeant Gbemunu Samuel, Sergeant Afolabi Oluwaseun and Corporal Adigun Omotayo, had arrested one Ifunanya Theodore on suspicion of involvement in armed robbery on Monday, December 17, 2018, and in the course of investigation, recovered the sum of CFA350,000 from him.
“After the investigation, the said Ifunanya Theodore was exonerated of the allegation. However, when his request for the release of his money was not attended to, he called the Area Commander in charge of Area K, Morogbo, ACP Hope Okafor, who directed that his money be released to him without delay.
“Meanwhile, the CP was briefed that the aforementioned police operatives were not at their professional best while handling the case. Consequently, he directed the head of the command’s Provost Section to arrest, investigate and try the officers involved in the orderly room, and if found guilty, appropriate punishment will be meted to them.”
The DPO in charge at the Ijanikin division has also been asked to answer to a query, upon which he would be reported to police Inspector General.
