THERE is ongoing controversy in Delta State over the alleged brutal killing of a citizen by gun-toting policemen in Asaba, the Delta State capital. The alleged victim, Emeka Okediachi, lost his life after being repeatedly hit with guns by police personnel. According to the elder brother of the deceased, Desmond, the incident happened at the Ogbe-Osowe quarters in Asaba. The allegations are quite chilling: “On November 14 at about 12 a.m to 1 a.m., my brother, his friend and his girlfriend were coming from Chronicles Hotel, very close to Slot. They saw men who were not wearing uniform who stopped them but they didn’t stop because they thought they were kidnappers. My brother, his friend and his girlfriend who were in the car ran to a spot where the police cornered them. They started shooting sporadically and started beating them. My brother’s girlfriend ran into her own house because the place they ran to was close to her house. People who wanted to help them could not because of the sporadic shooting and because the police used wood on them. So, no one could help them. I didn’t know what happened until the next morning. I saw him with a bandaged head and when I asked him what happened, he told me that he was hit on the head with a gun by police officers. The officers after doing this took him to hospital and got his head bandaged. They took his phone too.
“They came back in the morning and asked him to do a video that he hit his head on the wall while running from the police and that’s how he injured himself. They also collected N150,000 from him. When I heard this, I was angry and followed him to the police headquarters in Asaba. When we got there, he showed me the person that hit him on the head. The police said we should be thankful that at least he was not killed and that we should take him to hospital for treatment. When we took him to hospital at some point, he couldn’t talk well and we were told that his jaw was damaged when the police officers were beating him. At some point, he complained of back pain and we tried treating him. My mum called me after some days and said he was jerking. We took him to one hospital and they rejected him. It was at the second hospital that he was pronounced dead.”
Predictably, the Delta State police spokesperson, Bright Edafe, told a completely different story. His story: “On the 14th of November 2024 at about 0100 hours, the command received a distress call from a concerned citizen that there were some suspicious-looking persons around DBS road. Operatives of the command were detailed to move to the scene, and the operatives who were at that time along Nnebisi Road proceeded to the scene. On their way, they sighted a Venza SUV with registration No. GWK-646-FF, but the occupants of the vehicle, on noticing there were policemen, zoomed off. The operatives who were already acting on a distress call suspected the Venza vehicle, hence they went after them. They chased them to a compound along Nnebisi axis. The passengers alighted and were running in a bid to escape from the police. The driver was arrested immediately while the deceased initially escaped. A few minutes later, right there at the scene, the suspect came out with blood on his head and stated that he hit his head on a wall. The police swiftly took him to the hospital and paid for his medical bill. At about 0500 hours of the same date, the deceased was brought to the police headquarters where statements were recorded and the deceased stated in his statement that he hit his head on a fence while running away from the police. The Commissioner of Police has however ordered the Deputy Commissioner of Police State Criminal Investigation Department to take over the case and ensure that a thorough investigation is carried out. The CP, while condoling the family of the deceased, assures them that no stone will be left unturned and that if the operatives are found culpable, they will be made to face the law.”
This case is indeed saddening. It is underlined by the pervasive insecurity in the country and the climate of mutual distrust between the police and the citizenry. It is interesting that the Delta State Commissioner of Police has ordered a thorough investigation even while his command is sticking to the apparently incongruous narrative of the victim hitting the head against the wall. We expect further scrutiny and disclosures from the police, especially as the family of the deceased says that it has irrefutable evidence of his being beaten by the police, fingering a particular police operative who repeatedly beat him with his gun. Nigerians await the full report of the investigation promised by the Commissioner of Police and will not accept sweeping the case under the carpet.
In addition, since there are allegations and counter allegations, an independent investigation is called for. The Delta State government should set up an investigative panel. This is because human life is involved and the government should never give the impression that it can be taken at will or lost without question. Nigeria must be seen as a country that places high premium on human life.
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