By Okechukwu Nwanguma
When Nigerian citizens are arbitrarily arrested, held incommunicado, extorted, and humiliated under the guise of police investigations—often in cases that are either entirely civil or shrouded in secrecy—we must ask ourselves: what happened to the promise of police reform?
Two recent cases brought to the attention of RULAAC—the unlawful detention of Mr. Eme Alfred Friday by the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Enugu State Police Command, and the calculated harassment and extortion of Dr. Mabel Ebele Magbulu by officers under Zone 5 Benin—reveal a disturbing pattern of abuse, disregard for the law, and weaponization of police powers for private gain.
In the first case, Mr. Friday was forcibly taken from his home by men who gave no reason for the arrest. He was later briefly seen in handcuffs in Lagos, only to vanish again into a maze of denials and silence. For days, his whereabouts were concealed from his family. When he managed to place a single, desperate call confirming he was in Enugu, the Anti-Kidnapping Unit still denied holding him. Days later, they reluctantly admitted to detaining him—without documentation, legal representation, or charge. Today, over a month later, he remains in secret detention. His only crime appears to be the misfortune of crossing paths with rogue officers emboldened by a culture of impunity.
In the second case, Dr. Magbulu—a Lagos-based entrepreneur—was dragged into a criminal investigation over a civil debt dispute by a complainant who resides in Germany. Officers in Zone 5 Benin, far outside the locus of the transaction, compelled her to sign a disputed, inflated debt agreement and extorted over ₦400,000 from her via POS—without receipts. The choice of jurisdiction, the coercion under detention, and the financial extortion paint a clear picture of police officers acting as debt collectors for the highest bidder.
These are not isolated cases. They are symptoms of a systemic breakdown in accountability within the Nigerian Police Force. Units created to tackle heinous crimes like kidnapping have now become private militias for individuals seeking to bypass the courts and exact personal revenge or profit. Officers now routinely defy court orders, detain citizens without charge, and obstruct access to lawyers and family. Torture and extortion are the currency of their operations. The constitutional safeguards of liberty, dignity, and fair trial exist only on paper for many Nigerians.
The danger in these patterns is twofold. First, they delegitimise the police in the eyes of the public, deepening the trust deficit and fueling citizen apathy or hostility. Second, they undermine national security. When elite police units abandon real crimes in pursuit of personal gain, the result is rising impunity for actual kidnappers, armed robbers, and terrorists.
The Inspector-General of Police has, in the past, issued directives against the criminalisation of civil transactions and the abuse of police powers for debt recovery. Yet, as these cases show, such orders are routinely flouted by field officers. The absence of consequences has emboldened further abuse.
We must draw a line.
RULAAC calls for the immediate release or court arraignment of Mr. Friday, an investigation into the conduct of the officers involved in both cases, and administrative or criminal sanctions where appropriate. We also call on the Police Service Commission, the National Human Rights Commission, and civil society to step up pressure for reform and oversight. No democracy can survive when law enforcement becomes lawless.
The time has come to break the cycle of abuse and demand a police force that serves, not preys upon, the public. Anything less is an invitation to chaos.
Mr Okechukwu Nwanguma, Executive Director, Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC)
