Man allegedly tortured to death by Police operatives in Asaba

Tragedy struck in Asaba, Delta State, as a man identified as Okediachi Emeka reportedly died after being assaulted by police operatives.

According to the victim’s family, the incident occurred at Ogbe-Osowe quarters in the state capital.

Okediachi Desmond, the victim’s brother, narrated the events, revealing that Emeka was hit with a rifle by the officers, leading to his untimely death. The family, speaking to SaharaReporters on Saturday, expressed outrage and called for justice.

Details surrounding the circumstances of the assault remain unclear. However, the incident has sparked renewed concerns over police brutality in Nigeria.

The Delta State Police Command has yet to issue an official statement on the matter, but human rights activists are already demanding accountability and an investigation into the actions of the officers involved.

“The Nigerian police hit his head with a gun, they killed my brother” he lamented.

“On the 14th of November at about 12am to 1am, they were coming from Chronicles hotel, very close to Slot. They saw men who were not wearing uniform who stopped them but they didn’t stop because they thought they were kidnappers.

“My brother, his friend and his girlfriend who were in the car ran to a spot where the police cornered them. They started shooting sporadically and started beating them. My brother’s girlfriend ran into her own house because where they ran to was close to her house.”

“People who wanted to help them could not because of the sporadic shooting and because the police used wood on them. So no one could help them.

“I didn’t know what happened till the next morning. I saw him with a bandaged head and when I asked him what happened, he told me that he was hit in the head with a gun by police officers. The officers after doing this took him to hospital and got his head bandaged. They took his phone too..

“They came back in the morning and asked him to do a video that he hit his head on the wall while running from the police and that’s how he injured himself. They also collected N150,000 from him.”

“When I heard, I was angry and followed him to the police headquarters in Asaba. When we got there he showed me the person that hit him on the head and during the melee, they took him upstairs and I stayed downstairs.

“The police said we should be thankful that at least he was not killled and instead we should take him to hospital for treatment.

“When we took him to hospital at some point, he wouldn’t talk well and we were told that he damaged his jaw when the police officers were beating him. At some point he complained of back pain and we tried treating him.

“My mum called me after some days and said he was jerking, we took him to one hospital and they rejected him, it was at the second hospital that they pronounced him dead.”

He stated that the claims that his brother hit his head on the wall was false.

“I have pictures to show that he was hit in the head and he didn’t hit his head on the wall”.

When contacted, the Delta State Police Spokesperson, Bright Edafe denied that Emeka was hit with a gun, stating that he hit his head on the wall.

“On the 14th of November 2024 at about 0100 hours, the command received a distress call from a concerned citizen that there were some suspicious-looking persons around DBS road.”

“Operatives of the command were detailed to move to the scene, and the operatives who were at that time along Nnebisi Road proceeded to the scene. On their way, they sighted a Venza SUV with reg. No GWK-646-FF but the occupants of the vehicle on noticing there were policemen zoomed off.

“The operatives who were already acting on a distress call suspected the Venza Vehicle hence they went after them. They chased them to a compound along Nnebisi axis. The passengers alighted and were running in a bid to escape from the police.

“The driver was arrested immediately while the deceased initially escaped. A few minutes later right there at the scene, the suspect came out with blood on his head and stated that he hit his head on a wall. The police swiftly took him to the hospital and paid for his medical bill. At about 0500 hours of the same date, the deceased was brought to the Police headquarters where statements were recorded and the deceased stated in his statement that he hit his head on a wall fence while running away from the police.”

He however noted that the Commissioner of Police in the state had ordered investigation into circumstances surrounding the incident:

“The Commissioner of Police has however ordered the Deputy Commissioner of Police State Criminal Investigation department to take over the case and ensure that a thorough investigation is carried out.”

“The CP while condoling the family of the deceased assures them that no stone will be left unturned and that if the operatives are found culpable, they will be made to face the law.”

There have been concerns over police brutality and extra-judicial activities which on a number of occasions have led to loss of lives.