Lawyer Petitions COAS After Soldiers Allegedly Beat Police ASP To Stupor

A public interest and human rights lawyer named Inibehe Effiong has formally submitted a petition to Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, the Chief of Army Staff, urging him to investigate and take action against a group of Army personnel allegedly involved in assaulting a police officer, ASP Edet Inyang.

Effiong, in a statement posted on X on Thursday night, said the incident took place on December 9, 2023, near the Nigerian Army’s 63 Brigade in Asaba, Delta State, where ASP Inyang was assaulted by an unidentified group of Army personnel while making a personal purchase at a store.

Recent warnings from President Bola Tinubu cautioning the Nigerian Army against retaliatory assaults on police or civilians in response to provocations were stressed in the statement.

Effiong noted the Army’s purported zero-tolerance policy for human rights abuses by its personnel, quoting Brig. Gen. Sani Usman, a former Director of Army Public Relations.

The lawyer provided a detailed account of ASP Inyang’s ordeal in a statement titled “How Nigerian Army Personnel Tortured and Brutalised Serving Police Officer ASP Edet Inwang Till He Lost Consciousness Over Alleged Wrong Parking.”

The statement included graphic videos and photos as evidence.

The statement read, “These are graphic videos and pictures of a serving Assistant Superintendent of Police posted to the Delta State Police Command, ASP Edet Inyang. The attack happened on the 9th of December 2023. He parked his vehicle at a store close to the Nigerian Army’s 63 Brigade in Asaba to purchase some items.

“Upon parking, he heard the voice of a man on mufti whom he would later identify as one Lance Corporal Onyibuchi of the Intelligence Department attached to the 63 Brigade, Asaba talking from a far distance and speaking in tones which he could not comprehend. While the ranting was going on, a uniformed soldier approached him and requested him to re-park his vehicle.

“He immediately made attempts to comply with the instruction. While he was trying to re-park, the said Lance Corporal approached him and dragged him backwards and asked him why he refused to obey his instructions. Edet tried to explain that he did not hear him properly because he was inaudible given the distance between them. The next thing was for the said Lance Corporal to start pounding on and brutalising ASP Edet along with not less than 10 other soldiers.

“They brutalised him till he lost consciousness and they had to take him to the military hospital for medical care. It was while in the hospital that one of the officers whom he had worked with in a Joint Task Force recognised him. The soldiers who tortured him to almost the point of death, upon being queried by their superior, said they did not know that he was a police officer. What a ridiculous statement!

“Should any human being be treated so horribly over alleged wrong parking? Assuming without conceding that he did not park properly, or that he parked at a wrong place, should the response be an attempt on his life? Is traffic offence now within the jurisdiction of the Nigerian Army?”

In his plea to Lieutenant General Lagbaja, Effiong urged a swift and thorough investigation to identify and bring the culprits to justice.

He condemned the actions of the soldiers, describing them as a violation of ASP Inyang’s fundamental human rights. Effiong also requested appropriate compensation for the injured police officer, stressing the need for accountability to prevent further abuses.

The statement concluded with a call for urgent attention from the Chief of Army Staff to address the matter and ensure justice for ASP Inyang, whose injuries required medical attention.

Effiong urged the Nigerian Army to act promptly to uphold citizens’ rights and prevent such incidents’ recurrence.