Juliana Francis
The Rivers State Police Command said it has arrested and detained a police officer for allegedly extorting some passengers.
The Rivers State Police Command arrested the policeman following a complaint from a victim on Twitter. The complainant also shared the policeman’s picture, which he took when the officer was not watching.
The Police tweeted: “The officer (in this post) has been arrested and detained. The investigation is ongoing. I also urge the complainant to come and facilitate the investigation process for us to give feedback to members of the public, you can still reach me via this number 09014273818.”
The Rivers State Command Police’s initial response following the complainant was a promise.
He stated: “The Commissioner of Police we have in Rivers State Command has zero tolerance for such shameful act. The officer will be identified and face disciplinary measures while your money will be refunded.”
The complainant, Napaul @LifeOfNapaul, while sharing his ordeal, said that was not the first-time police would be falsely accusing and extorting him.
His words: “I’m so tired for real. I’m so tired and exhausted mentally because this has been occurring. The last time, I was taken to the police station bundled like a criminal because I use an iPhone.
“Today, on my way to Port Harcourt (PH) via public transport, in the middle of nowhere we were told to park. I was searched, my WhatsApp chats were opened one by one, every app was searched, and they found nothing.
“Bruh, in the middle of nowhere, these guys said they won’t free us until we service them. We were just four guys in the sienna, the rest women. They said 50k each, I just kept laughing because it sounded like a joke.
“They told the driver to leave us and go but I kept begging the driver to stay that he can’t leave us, bruh I didn’t even know our location at that moment.
“We stood for over 1: 30mins, I tried talking back and they handcuffed me. Bro I’m not a criminal, they said I’m a suspect, I kept asking “How?” At that moment I was so angry.
“At the end, we paid 10k each, 10k each for being a Nigerian youth. The funny thing is that these so-called officers were counting the money they made from extortion in front of us. Please convince me that these guys aren’t criminals in uniform. Convince me?!.
“Someone will say how did you dress? Bruh, I don’t dress anyhow, I’m always neat, and simple. I’m bald, meaning I’m not in dreads or any hairstyle that warrants suspicion. So it isn’t an appearance thing.
“I’m home safe but the question in my head rn is ‘Why?! Why?’ It’s annoying for God’s sake. I took a Pic of the Man that searched my phone before he collected my phone. The account number I sent the money to was a woman’s and I searched Facebook and discovered she lives in Abuja.
“I didn’t get their names, the Hilux they used wasn’t the official Nigeria Police Hilux and it had no plate number.”
