The Nigerian police officers have been accused of working with kidnappers.
Police officers from Zuba in Abuja on Tuesday broke into the home of Ismaeel Gbadamosi around 10 pm, behaving precisely like kidnappers, according to Gbadamosi’s wife.
Gbadamosi is a teacher at Foliage Academy, Abuja.
His wife told SaharaReporters that when the police officers, whom they initially thought were kidnappers, could not gain access to their home through the door, the officers broke the ceiling and jumped inside.
Here is her story:
“Last night, around 10 pm, we put on the generator because I was marking students’ exam scripts. My husband had slept. I heard a bang on the gate, thinking it was a neighbour. Maybe the electricity company has restored light. Suddenly I had continuous sounds as if they were using stone on the entrance to force it open. I quickly woke him up that armed robbers were breaking the door.
“They started shouting that we should open the door, that they will shoot us, kill us, that they have rifles and cutlasses. My cousin ran to lock the door with the key. My husband was holding the doorknob because they were hitting it with iron to break it. My children and I were crying. They were pointing searchlights inside the house. Many were at the door. Some were at the window trying to remove the burglary.
“I was calling my neighbours for help from the room. I know he must have called some people to call the police for our rescue. So, my husband was holding the door for it not to fall or open. Then one of them said they should enter through the ceiling. They said they would kill us if they gained entrance. They spent more than 30 minutes on this. My children were crying and begging them to spare us.
“All of a sudden, one of them jumped in through the ceiling. So I ran to open the door and beg them for our lives quickly. Like six of them entered, just one of them half kit like a police officer. The remaining five are Fulanis dressed like Boko Haram. Then I thought they were kidnappers. One of them kicked my husband hard. I quickly moved closer to my husband, begging them that we would cooperate with them.
“Then one of them said they are policemen and we should not panic. They handcuffed him and pushed him out and sat him on the floor. He said they were taking directives from the DPO Zuba police station. I told him that we are responsible people, and what have we done? They said they were looking for something and insulted me several times for querying them.
“My husband was wearing just a trouser. A neighbour came inside to ask them what happened. They immediately arrested him too. One of them has Isah Dahiru written on his uniform. So I noted the name. He removed the handcuffs and said, ‘Take him to the vehicle.’ Then I followed them and started shouting to the neighbours that they were kidnappers. The vehicle was parked at a longer distance to my house. Then we saw other people in their car. I was still insisting they were kidnappers. So I took a bike to follow them to the station to establish they were policemen.”
“The DPO tactically tried to give Isah Dahiru room to turn the case, but the man was gullible. He admitted that my husband was arrested for no reason as they were looking for cocaine dealers. The DPO pleaded that he was ashamed of what happened. He pleaded that he would discipline them internally.
“See, these police officers are working with the kidnappers, because like 10 of the boys that followed them were Fulanis kited like Boko Haram. They broke other people’s ceiling and doors too. They came for kidnapping.
“The DPO did not come to the scene to investigate. He tried to deny that they did not enter through the ceiling. Please, we are afraid maybe they may plan to harm us again. The DPO is just three weeks in Zuba. If he is not cautioned, he will terrorize the community.”
