Dismissed Policemen: We Extort People Because We Haven’t Been Paid
Dismissed Police Officers Confess to Extorting Money from Nigerians Due to Non-Payment of Salaries by NPF
Two police officers who were dismissed from the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) for demanding money from a Dutch biker in Oyo State have broken their silence, confessing that they extorted money from Nigerians because they had not been paid by the NPF for months.
The two officers, identified as Corporal Oluwaseun Oyebanji and Constable Oluwasegun Oyebanji, were part of the team that stopped and harassed a Dutch biker on her way to Lagos from Ibadan on December 28th, 2023.
The incident was captured on video by the rider who posted it on her social media accounts, exposing the officers’ demand for money and their threat to impound his motorcycle.
The video went viral, sparking outrage and condemnation from the public and the authorities. The NPF swiftly reacted, arresting and dismissing the officers for misconduct and tarnishing the image of the force.
However, the dismissed officers have now come out to defend their actions, claiming that they were driven to extort money from Nigerians because they had not received their salaries from the NPF for over six months.
They said that they were among the thousands of police officers who were affected by the irregular payment of salaries by the NPF, which they attributed to the corruption and mismanagement of funds by the top brass of the force.
They said that they had no other means of survival, as they had to cater for their families and pay their bills. They said that they resorted to collecting money from motorists and other road users, who they described as their “customers.”
They also alleged that they were not the only ones involved in the extortion racket, as many of their colleagues and superiors were also part of it. They said that they had to remit a certain percentage of the money they collected to their bosses, who in turn shared it with the higher authorities.
They said that they were scapegoated and sacrificed by the NPF, who used them as an example to cover up their own inefficiencies and corruption. They said that they were unfairly dismissed, without any due process or compensation.
They appealed to the federal government and the public to intervene in their case, and to look into the plight of the police officers who had not been paid by the NPF. They said that they were willing to return the money they collected from Mr. Nielson and other Nigerians, if they were reinstated and paid their salaries.
They also apologized to the rider and other Nigerians for their actions, saying that they were not proud of what they did, but they had no choice. They said that they joined the police force to serve and protect the nation, but they were frustrated and disillusioned by the system.
