CP Idowu Owohunwa, the Commissioner of Police for the Lagos State Police Command, has issued a directive for the prompt replacement of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Meiran Police Station due to a lack of effective leadership and supervisory skills.
The Commissioner of Police issued the directive following allegations by engineer Ibrahim Saliu, who accused certain officers stationed at the precinct of extorting N200,000 from him.
Saliu asserted that these officers had apprehended him and his brother, Olaiya Murtala, due to their failure to produce an identity card or receipts for the iPhones discovered in Olaiya’s possession.
As per Saliu’s account, the officers, in conjunction with the DPO of the station, used the threat of incarceration to coerce him and his brother into producing receipts for the mobile phones.
“The DPO took the iPhones, removed the warranty stickers, and declared that my brother and I are thieves and armed robbers,” he explained.
“The next thing I heard was the DPO giving them an order to detain us and that we would be locked up for stealing and armed robbery. We were surprised that we started begging.
Saliu revealed that he was required to provide a payment of N500,000 to ensure their release, but they ultimately settled for N200,000, paid in cash as instructed by the officers.
The command’s spokesperson, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, officially affirmed this information in a statement issued on Wednesday, October 18.
The PPRO stated, “CP Idowu Owohunwa has ordered the immediate removal of DPO Meiran for leadership dereliction and supervisory ineptitude. Meanwhile, all the officers involved have been identified and are currently at the Command headquarters where their orderly room trial has commenced.”