The Nigeria Police Force has invited social media critic Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, to provide evidence supporting allegations he made against police officers during the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) conference in Port Harcourt.
VeryDarkMan made the claims on Tuesday while serving as a panelist at the 66th Annual General Conference of the NBA.
He alleged that some police officers manning checkpoints along major highways provide kidnappers and bandits with information about the identities and movements of travellers.
According to him, such alleged collusion has contributed to the abduction of people for ransom across the country.
However, the Nigeria Police Force has rejected the allegations, describing them as serious claims that require evidence.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, said police personnel deployed to checkpoints and other locations nationwide were assigned to prevent crime, detect criminal activities and protect citizens.
The Force said its officers routinely confront the same criminal elements accused of receiving information from checkpoints.
The police therefore invited VeryDarkMan to produce the evidence upon which he based his allegations.
“Accordingly, the Nigeria Police Force hereby invites Mr. Martins Vincent Otse to produce, without delay, the evidence upon which he based these serious allegations,” the statement said.
The Force specifically requested any evidence showing that police officers at checkpoints identify wealthy travellers and subsequently pass their details to kidnappers to facilitate their abduction.
The police said any evidence presented would be treated urgently and investigated thoroughly.
The Force also urged members of the public with credible evidence of police misconduct to report such cases through official channels rather than relying solely on public allegations.
It said this would allow appropriate action to be taken against any officer found to have engaged in misconduct.
