A police inspector attached to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Lagos State Police Command, Ikorodu office, allegedly collected N5,000 from a lady after threatening to shoot her.
It was learnt that the lady, Ifeoluwa Adegoke, and her crew were going to Ikorodu for a photo shoot when the policemen, who were on patrol, stopped them and demanded bribe from them.
The officer, identified as Inspector Charles Omotosho, was said to have threatened to shoot the lady for daring to confront him. Before allowing the lady and her crew to go, she was forced to transfer N5,000 into his bank account.
It was also learnt that the policeman was later arrested by the Police Complaint Commission Unit, following a post shared on social media by the lady that went viral on Wednesday. Adegoke said she was going for a photo shoot on Wednesday at Ikorodu when a team of SARS operatives, including the officer in question, Omotosho, pulled the commercial bus she was in over and demanded a bribe.
The victim said that she would not have given Omotosho the bribe, but she was scared because the inspector threatened to kill all the passengers in the vehicle including her, if they refused to pay. She said: “With my encounter with the SARS op-eratives, it is safe to say SARS officials are armed robbers. They threatened they were going to waste my crew and I.
“So, to prevent them from carrying out their threat, I was made to transfer the N5,000 into the account of the policeman. The policeman did not care whether he could be traced through the transaction.”
In a swift reaction, the Head Police Complaints Commission Unit (PCRRU), an Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP Abayomi Shogunle, said the unit had traced the account owner. He said: “My dearest, Ifeoluwa, I’m glad to inform you that the account owner has been identified as one Inspector Charles Omotosho attached to the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Ikorodu, Lagos State.”
The ACP said the inspector, who received the money, was presently in custody and he was undergoing interrogation. He added: “Preliminary investigation is ongoing; we would keep the public informed on the next line of action. We are very sorry for the experience.”
Confirming the incident, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Chike Oti, said the officer had been arrested and was presently undergoing orderly room trial.