The Nigeria Police Force has challenged social media activist Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), to provide evidence to support his allegation that police officers manning checkpoints on major highways pass information about travellers to kidnappers and bandits.
The Force, in a statement issued on Thursday by its Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, said the allegation was “unsubstantiated” and unfairly damaging to an institution responsible for protecting millions of Nigerians.
Otse reportedly made the allegation during the ongoing Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Conference in Port Harcourt, where he alleged that police officers at checkpoints identify wealthy travellers and relay information about their movements to criminal gangs, thereby facilitating kidnappings for ransom.
Reacting to the claim, the police said allegations of such gravity required credible evidence, stressing that its personnel deployed to checkpoints were tasked with preventing crime, detecting criminal activity and protecting citizens.
The Force also noted that police officers routinely confronted criminal elements on the nation’s highways and elsewhere, adding that many personnel had been ambushed, attacked and killed by terrorists, kidnappers and other violent criminals.
It said police stations, operational formations and other police assets had also come under attacks by criminal groups.
According to the statement, the allegation was particularly demoralising to the hundreds of thousands of police officers who work under difficult, underfunded and dangerous conditions.
The Force, however, acknowledged that individual officers could be investigated and sanctioned where evidence established that they had compromised their duties.
“Where individual officers are found to have compromised their duty, they will face the full weight of internal discipline and the law,” the statement said.
The police therefore invited Otse to submit, without delay, the evidence upon which he based his allegations, particularly any information showing that checkpoint personnel identify wealthy individuals and subsequently transmit their details to kidnappers.
It assured that any evidence provided would be treated with urgency and thoroughly investigated.
The Force similarly urged members of the public who have credible evidence of police misconduct to report such cases through appropriate channels rather than relying solely on public allegations.
It reaffirmed its commitment to transparency and accountability, saying credible allegations of misconduct would continue to be investigated and appropriate action taken where wrongdoing was established.
The police also appealed to Nigerians to exercise responsibility when making or sharing allegations concerning national security institutions, warning that unsubstantiated claims could undermine public trust and national security.
