Date Published: 08/21/09

Onovo orders arrest of Imo politician

Inspector-General of Police, Ogbonnaya Onovo may have ordered the arrest of a politician in Arondizuogu, Imo State, Kingsley Ufere, over a reported case of Assault, kidnapping and breach of peace.

According to the chief’s kinsmen, Ufere  in the wee hours of  Saturday, August 14, this year, without provocation, stormed the Amazu-uno, Arondizuogu community in  Ideato North Local Government Area of  Imo State with over 20 policemen and allegedly  assaulted and kidnapped some of  the villagers, among them, a man of  70 years old.

In a petition to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), dated August 17, 2009 and signed by two of the community’s leaders, Mazi Johnson Nwosu and Mazi Nnamdi Ozim, they said that on the fateful day, the community had not suspected anything untoward because it was not unusual for their son to visit the village in company of truckloads of policemen “who occasionally harass and beat innocent villagers”.

“However, on this occasion, Mr. Kingsley Ufere and his policemen took their harassment and intimidation a step further. They waited until 4am that fateful morning before raiding the homes of some of the elders in the village, dragging  them out of their beds, beating, roughening them up and throwing them into his truck, not minding that some of these men were over 70 years old”, they stated.

According to the petition, the alleged attack continued until some villagers raised an alarm and   sensing that a riot may erupt, the assailants quickly disappeared with some of the elders they had seized, among them: Emmanuel Okeke, Marcel Uba and Linus Ekemezie.

During a search, the villagers went to Urualla police  station, the nearest to the community where it was discovered that  the policemen who allegedly carried out the assault and abduction came from the Owerri Central Police Station and that they did not make any entry at the home police station before embarking on their action.

 At the Central Police Station Owerri, the abducted elders were found to have been cramped up in a cell without being told why they were arrested.

“They also confirmed that no statements were taken from them that they were neither questioned about any offence nor any charge preferred against them”, they added.

The community leaders maintained that the elders were allegedly kidnapped and humiliated for no reason, using the services of policemen who are supposed to protect them, simply because a fellow citizen could afford to pay the police to do his bidding.

They urged the IGP to wade into the matter with a view to bringing the culprits to book.