Police arrest power-drunk cop’s team members, grill DPO

Posted by admin Headlines, Nigerian Police Tuesday, December 16th, 2014

-Punch

The police have arrested other six cops at the scene of the torture of a couple in the Lekki area of Lagos State.

A police source told PUNCH Metro on Tuesday that the policemen were being detained at the state police headquarters in Ikeja to explain their role in the incident.

Our correspondent had reported how Ejeh Smith and his wife, Grace, were allegedly tortured by a police corporal, Dada Ogunsanya, in the Lekki area.

They were going home in a cab when the incident happened.

Ogunsanya was alleged to have hit Ejeh with his rifle and stepped on the stomach of his wife, while the other policemen looked on.

A passerby, who saw the attack, was said to have insisted that the attention of the police DPO be called to the incident.

The DPO, Aisha Haruna, on arrival at the scene, allegedly backed Ogunsanya’s action and deleted Grace’s recordings of the attack.

Following PUNCH Metro’s report of the incident, which drew the ire of Nigerians, the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, ordered “a full-scale investigation” into the case.

Abba, in a statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, Emmanuel Ojukwu, said the police would not spare any cop found culpable in the course of investigations.

Our correspondent was told that the police had detained all the policemen involved in the incident pending the conduct of an orderly room trial.

The source said, “The police have arrested all the policemen on duty that night and they are currently being detained at the police headquarters.

“The DPO is also being interrogated to know the extent of her involvement.”

It was learnt the police wanted to conduct the orderly room trial for Ogunsanya on Tuesday, but postponed it for reasons our correspondent could not ascertain.

Speaking on the development, Ejeh, said, “I met with the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Cornelius Aderanti, and he said they have arrested all the seven policemen.

“The CP said they are conducting investigations to know if the policeman is guilty or not, and he assured me that the law will take its course.

“I just want justice to be done and I want to thank all Nigerians who have been supporting us since this started, especially the media.

“This case has cost me my convenience and time, but it is good if I can get justice.”

He said his health condition and that of his wife had improved.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Kenneth Nwosu, had yet to get back to our correspondent on the development as of the time of filing this report.

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