Cases of police extortion in Nigeria have continued despite punishment by police authorities, such as dismissal from service.
The Commissioner of Police in Imo State, Aboki Danjuma, has ordered the arrest of officers seen in a viral video clip extorting motorists in the state.
The police spokesperson, Henry Okoye, disclosed this in a statement on his X handle on Sunday.
Mr Okoye, an assistant superintendent of police, was reacting to a video clip uploaded on the microblogging platform by a social media user.
In the 15-second video clip, an armed police operative was seen collecting money from commercial bus drivers plying the road.
The clip did not show other operatives, but the social media user who uploaded the clip suggested other operatives were on duty along the road.
He also suggested that the incident happened in Imo State but did not give the exact location.
Commercial buses seen in the video clip were painted blue and white with red lines, which is the colour code for buses in Imo State.
'Immediate arrest'
Mr Okoye said Mr Danjuma "ordered the immediate arrest of the officer and their team seen in this video."
"He (Danjuma) has also directed the Command's Complaint Response Unit and Provost department to ensure the officers receive maximum punishment," the police spokesperson said.
Some X users condemned the officers for the alleged extortion, but Mr Okoye assured them he would ensure that the officers were sanctioned appropriately.
"I will personally identify these officers and share their details here to show that the Command has zero tolerance for extortion.
"Disciplinary actions will be taken against them to serve as a warning to others. Hold me on this," the spokesperson assured.
He put out his phone numbers and asked residents to call him if any operative wanted to harass or extort them.
Not the first time
Cases of police extortion in Nigeria have continued despite punishment, such as dismissal from service.
The latest incident is coming less than two months after police operatives in Bayelsa State extorted N3 million from a Nigerian at gunpoint.
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The officers were subsequently arrested after the victim petitioned police authorities. The police operatives, about three weeks later, returned the N3 million to the victim.
The N3 million extortion occurred about two months after police operatives in Anambra State allegedly extorted N810,000 from a resident of the state.
Following pressure from Nigerians, the operatives, some hours later, returned the money to the victim.
Earlier in June, a police operative who served in Abia State was dismissed for allegedly shooting dead an entrepreneur over his refusal to bribe him.
In March, another police operative was dismissed while two others were suspended for allegedly extorting $3,000 from two Nigerians in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
In February, a Divisional Crime officer of Abraka Division in Delta State was also removed from office for allegedly extorting over N2 million.
This newspaper, later the same month, reported the detention of some operatives at the police headquarters in Abuja for allegedly extorting N30.3 million.
