Onitsha biz man petitions CP over police brutality, extortion

www.odogwublog.com reports that seven policemen attached to the Central Police Station, CPS in the commercial city of Onitsha may run into trouble following a petition by an Onitsha international businessman, Paschal Onuoha over alleged extortion.

The counsel to Onuoha, Mr. Samuel Abuchi in a petition to the Anambra state police Commissioner, Mr. Hassan Karma alleged among other things how policemen from CPS intercepted his client while making bank transactions, handcuffed him and whisked him to an illegal cell where they allegedly collected the sum of N70, 000 from him.

He said “my client is an international businessman who deals on men wears and stock. On the 19^th day of February, our client was making a bank transfer within the bank premises when policemen numbering seven stormed the area, arrested him and took him to one field and collected N70, 000 from him before they released him”

Mr. Abuchi further alleged that his client was handcuffed and taken to an unknown place by the policemen and when he sought to know why they didn’t take him into the police station to make his statement, they threatened to shoot him and later demanded the sum of N150, 000 before he could be released.

He also said that the team of policemen led by one Inspector Lucky (other names withheld) told his client that they were acting on a tip off that the businessman was buying and selling stolen goods which he said the policemen could not produce evidence of their claim or even provide any complainant to the allegations.

“It took the intervention of my client’s friend from the Stock Exchange Office complex who saw how the policemen who came in a vehicle marked NPF 8555C belonging to Operation Mkpochapu were manhandling the businessman and came to his aide by giving the policemen the sum of N70, 000 before he was released”

He called on the Police Commissioner to investigate the matter and bring the erring policemen to book and return the money they took unlawfully from his client or the may be forced to explore other legal means to get justice.