COVID-19: Civil Rights Group Calls For Immediate Removal of Lagos DPO

A civil rights group, Save Lagos Group (SLG) has urged the authority of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to caution the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Oko-Oba Police Station, Abule-Egba area, Agege, Mr Kingsley Anyanwu with Phone number-08032168417, over illegal arrest and extortion of Lagosians during this period of Coronavirus popularly code-named COVID-19.

The group alleged that the Policemen attached to the Police Station detained the two Lagosians at their custody against the directive of the Inspector General of Police (IGP) since Tuesday 31st of March,2020 till the time of filing this report.

Giving the name of the two persons detained illegally by the Police as; Ayodele Olagoke, a student of The Polytechnic, Ibadan and Ayoololuwa Bamise, adding that the DPO and his men had not allowed them to write any statement since seven days they have been in their custody.

Explaining the remote cause of the matter to the leaders and members of the Save Lagos Group (SLG), a family member of the suspects, Mr Olumakinwa Adedotun Babatunde with phone number-08066999356 disclosed that “the owner of the car, Honda’s End of Discussion, one Mr Ismail Tella with Phone Number:-07038758241, used the Car to send the alleged suspects on an errand in the town.

“On getting to the Bus-Stop, they met the Police roadblock and in an attempt to stop, one woman Police Officer, Inspector Joy, jumped in front of the car which made the vehicle to hit her and immediately, she was taken to the hospital of her choice, Hamkad Hospital located at Olawale Cole street, off Risikatu Majaro Street, U-turn Bus-Stop, Abule-Egba.

“Being her(Inspector Joy) hospital used for National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), after her treatment and discharged as well, the family of the suspects paid for the Ten per cent (10%) of the Hospital bill and also gave her sum of Forty Thousand Naira(N40,000) with foodstuff and Beverages as being demanded”.

Meanwhile, the owner of the Car, Mr Tella pleads to an Assistant Commissioner of Police(ACP) Agboola attached to the State Police Headquarters in Ikeja, to help them prevail on the DPO Anyanwu to release the two suspects on bail with the impounded Car but it was like putting Petrol on fire.

According to Tella, while approaching the DPO on Sunday 5th March 2020, he got the three slapped on his face in return from DPO, for having the audacity to inform the superior officer of the Command on the subject matter, adding that the DPO promised to give the Car for a driver to use it for Uber transport after the end of the stay at home order by the Federal Government.

While the leadership of the Save Lagos Group (SLG) through its Convener, Comrade Adeniyi Alimi Sulaiman, trying to appeal to the DPO Anyanwu on the matter to look into the cognisance of the present situation in the country as regards the global pandemic, in respect of the directive of the IGP Adamu.

But DPO Anyanwu shun all the appeal by saying that he would not respect any rights of the detained suspects, not to talk of IGP Adamu’s directive on the Pandemic facing the land presently and it was later discovered that he wants their family to pay the sum of Two Hundred Thousand Naira (N200,000) for the release of the two suspects and the impounded Honda’s End of the Discussion Car with the Plate number:- AKD 79 BF at the Police Station.

According to the Investigation Police Officer (IPO) named Toyin with Phone Number:-09096991624, who has been working with a human face to ensure that the matter did not go out of hand, maintained that the prompt response of the family of the detained suspects were encouraging on the treatment of their woman officer.

Sulaiman, then called for immediate removal of Mr Anyanwu as Divisional Police Officer, saying that he was not a good ambassador of the Force for his unofficial conduct and breaching of IGP directive to the Police formations across the country in respect of current global health challenges.

He, therefore, urged Lagos State Commissioner of Police to wade into the matter before it went out of hand, noting that the appropriate democratic action would be taken by the group on the matter to seek redress and get justice for the duo.