By Ikhili Ebalu, Benin City
A Benin based Socio-cultural Group, Benin Solidarity Movement (BSM) worldwide , has sent a petition to the Inspector General of Police(IGP), Usman Alkali Baba, on an alleged plot by the Police to pervert course of Justice in a kidnapping case being handled by operatives of the anti – kidnapping section of the Edo State Police Command.
In the petition signed by Ambassador Curtis Eghosa Ugbo and Esohe Adun, President and Acting Secretary General respectively and made available to journalists in Benin City , BSM said that, “our petition is that a deadly kidnap group was taken down by the operatives of the anti-kidnapping team in the Edo State Police Command recently with the arrest of the kingpins of the group namely Sunny Osahon, Monday Edokpolor and Ikponmwosa Iyayiumwen while others are still at large.
They said, “During Police investigation the kingpins confessed to the crime and made a whole lot of revelations about their modus operandi and how they have been a source of concern for people in the vicinity.
“The case has been charged to Criminal Court 3 of the Edo State High Court for prosecution of the masterminds of the deadly act. And information reaching the leadership of the Benin Solidarity Movement (BSM) worldwide is that there are plans by some unscrupulous elements in authority to withdraw the case from the court even after the Director of Public Prosecution(DPP) advised that they have a case to answer.”
The Group appealed to the IGP to promptly intervene in the case “to avert a situation where self-help would be resorted to by those who are aggrieved about it.”
Going further, the group stressed, “any attempt to sweep the case under the carpet by these unscrupulous elements because they are in position of authority or are influential may lead to a response that may be way above the fallout of the recent ENDSARS protests across the nook and cranny of the country.”
Responding to the protesters at the gate of the Edo State Police Command Headquarters where they had gone to submit a copy of their petition to the leadership of the command, Chidi Nwabuzor, the State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), cautioned them to keep the protest peaceful and resist any attempt by miscreants to hijack it to their advantage.
He promised them that whatever be the situation they are guaranteed justice no matter which division of the Police is handling the case as the Police remain the same all over the country.