The Plateau State Police Commissioner, Okoro Julius, on Tuesday, said he has arrested officers who extorted N100,000 from complainants in Jos, the state capital.
Daily Trust reports that the arrested officers are attached to the anti-kidnaping unit of the state’s police command.
The arrest of the police operatives followed an allegation of N500,000 extortion from the complainants on October 15 by the officers, a development that prompted the police commissioner to wade into the matter for investigation.
But the police commissioner said in the course of the investigation, it was revealed that the officers collected N100,000 and not 500,000 as reported by some media outfits (not Daily Trust), adding that the money had been recovered and handed over to the complaints.
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The spokesperson of the state command, DSP Alabo Alfred said, “Following the allegation of extortion by operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit (AKU) attached to the Plateau State Police Command reported by one Victor Ayeni of the Punch Newspaper on the 15th October 2023 with the headline, ‘ Policemen invaded our estate, force us to pay N500,000- Jos residents’, the Plateau State Command has investigated the claim, identified the deviant officers, recovered exhibits and handed them over to the complainants.
“In a bid to ensure that the matter is given the urgent attention that it deserves, the commissioner of police Plateau State Command, CP Okoro J. Alawari, pcs on the 16th October, 2023 invited the complainants namely; Audu Michael and Bitrus Zakka to his office where the erring officers were paraded and interviewed before them.
The PRO further stated, “But contrary to the Punch report, one of the complainants, Audu Michael voluntarily disclosed to the Police that the Punch reporter, Victor Ayeni misrepresented and exaggerated the fact by reporting that AKU operatives extorted the sum of Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000) instead of One Hundred Thousand Naira (N100,000) as alleged by the complainant, Mr Audu Michael.
“The Police boss who frowns at the unprofessional conduct of the affected officers assures Plateau residents that his administration will not harbour bad eggs in his Command. He therefore ordered the *OC Provost* of the Command to commence the orderly room trial of the officers with immediate effect.”
The spokesperson further said the police commissioner has urged the general public to always report Police unethical conduct to the Police Public Relations Department and Complaints Response Unit (CRU) of the command for prompt attention.
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