Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State has pledged to ensure that three police officers accused of involvement in illegal arrests and extra-judicial killings in the state face the full wrath of the law if found guilty.
This is contained in a statement by the governor’s spokesperson, Christian Aburime, on Saturday.
Gistlover blog published a report via its Instagram hamdle accusing the officers of engaging in the illegal arrest, torture, extortion and extra-judicial killings of their victims.
The affected officers are Patrick Agbazue, Nkeiruka Nwode and Harrison Akama.
Mr Agbazue, a chief superintendent of police, serves as officer-in-charge of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) Unit of the police in Anambra State, while Ms Nwode, a superintendent of police, is the spokesperson in Zone 13 Headquarters of the police.
Mr Akama, an inspector, is attached to the RRS unit of the police in Anambra State.
The blog claimed that the officers “illegally arrested their victims, labelled them as “unknown gunmen” and then tortured them to accept the labelling before killing them and taking possession of their vehicles and other valuables.
In response, the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali (IGP) ordered an investigation of three officers over the “weighty allegations” against them, the police spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said on Friday.
Soludo reacts
Mr Soludo commended the IGP for ordering the investigation of the officers, saying his intervention in the matter was “timely.”
“Consequently, it has become imperative in the light of the above to await the outcome of the investigations which is expected soonest,” he said.
He assured residents of the state that his administration was “closely monitoring the situation” and would ensure that justice was done at the end of the day on whoever was found culpable.
The governor requested the attorney-general of Anambra State to immediately call for and review all the files of cases handled by the RSS unit of the police being investigated.
“This will enable the attorney-general (to) give such directions or take necessary legal actions in line with Section 211 of the constitution and Sections 148, 149 and 150 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Anambra State 2022,” Mr Soludo stated.
The governor appealed to the residents of the state to remain patient and “allow the law to take its due course.”
He assured that his administration has zero tolerance for criminality, and would always allow the rule of law to reign supreme at all times for justice to be given to those who deserve it.
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