Police arrest fake, improperly dressed officers

Men of the Inspector-General of Police Monitoring Unit, under the office of Commissioner of Police, Mobile Police, on Tuesday morning, rounded up some fake and improperly dressed policemen during a raid around the River Niger Bridge area, at the Asaba/Onitsha boundary.


The men, led by a Superintendent of Police, Aniete Eyo, were sighted around the bridge head as early as 9am, with a van with the inscription, ‘Police Mobile Force Monitoring Unit, COMPLO MOPOL Office, Force HQ, Abuja’, parked strategically close by.

Several riot policemen, some not fully dressed in police uniform, took to their heels on sighting the unit, just as unlucky ones were apprehended and forced into the waiting van.

While efforts to speak with Eyo was rebuffed, as he retorted, “I am not ready here to speak with reporters,” another operative on the team, however, volunteered information on the development.

According to the officer, who requested that his name should not be mentioned, because he was not authorised to speak, the PMU was going round formations around the country, in compliance with the IG’s directive on discipline on his assumption of office.

He said, “We just arrested six policemen wearing illegal T-shirts and monkey jackets on top police uniform. Another wore mufti face cap on top of khaki monkey jacket. The other wore something that has police colour lining on the shoulder with the inscription, Gwoza – I have been there, on the back.

“We remove two (mobile policemen) on illegal escort duty from inside a Sport Utility Vehicle. A fake policeman was also arrested from a hideout, from where they hatch their operations of harassing people, while others ran away. Another one was caught with Pump Action gun. We arrested all of them and we are still moving around.

“The CP has made spirited efforts to get some arrested before the arrival of the IG’s team.”

When contacted, the Delta State Commissioner of Police, Ikechukwu Aduba, confirmed that the monitoring unit came from Abuja.

Aduba, via an SMS wrote, “IGP’s monitoring unit under the office of COMPOL MOPOL is touring round and have made arrests. The team is led by SP Eyo.”

Attempt to speak to the Force Police Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, on the matter was not successful as the conversation was aborted from his end as our correspondent made to introduce himself.