Two Police Deserters Arrested In Benin

Edo police operatives have arrested two suspected police deserters, Alex Akaeze (39) and Kadiri Hassan (45), along with three others for unlawfully possessing 1,080 kg of ICE, valued at ₦20 million.

The other suspects are, Ovie Samuel (46) Stanley Itota (45) Felix Oputi (46).

The suspects were apprehended at a guest house managed by one of them, Ovie, situated at No. 5 Colobus Street, off Upper Mission Extension Road, Benin City, by the Command’s Intelligence and Rapid Response Squad operatives.

The State Commissioner of Police, CP Funsho Adegboye, identified the two individuals as “fake policemen” involved in running a criminal syndicate engaged in illicit drug trafficking.

Speaking to journalists, Alex Akaeze stated: “I am an Inspector of Police. I was enlisted in 2009, I started in Ketu, from there to SARS. I was transferred to Zamfara, but I did not go. I worked myself back to Zone 2, from there I was transferred to Lagos State Command, from where we were later transferred to Alagbon since September last year, but was yet to report for duty there.

“These two officers [Command operatives], are our colleagues, we worked together in IRT, I have their phone numbers and I called them before I came down from Lagos and I told them that I have an urgent arrest to make and wanted them to follow us and they agreed.

“Although I told the that I still serve at Alagbon, but I didn’t tell them the truth that we have not reported for duty there. We were with them in their office yesterday and they led us to make the arrest.

“We were however surprised that they suddenly changed it for us and arrested us with the drug dealers.”

In his confession, Hassan Kadiri, a native of Edo State, who asserted that he enlisted in the Force in 2008 and held the rank of Inspector, also acknowledged that he had not reported for duty at Alagbon since his transfer in February of this year.

Ovie Samuel, a hotel operator from Orogun, Delta State, who acquired the hard drug, denied involvement in dealing hard drugs. However, when questioned about how the men knew he could obtain ICE for them, he couldn’t provide an answer.

“The people called me and said that they needed ICE and I called my brother in Delta state to bring it for them, only for them to reveal their real identities that they are policemen,” he said.

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