Political, Community Leaders Shield Kidnappers— Delta CP

The Delta State Commissioner of Police, Aina Adesola, has warned community leaders and politicians to stop meddling in criminal investigations and prosecutions.

He lamented that in many cases across the country, political actors, families and interest groups attempting to manipulate police investigations to shield criminals.

The police boss stated during a courtesy visit to the palace of the Emmanuel Sideso Abe 1 in Effurun, as part of his familiarization tour of police formations across Delta state where he revealed that such interference emboldens kidnappers, cultists and other offenders.

While denouncing the growing trend of relatives and associates of suspected criminals deploying pressure tactics, including social media blackmail, to influence police officers and derail justice, he warned that such practices weaken law enforcement efforts and ultimately encourage criminals to continue terrorising communities.

“It is only in Nigeria you see families of criminals, kidnappers and cultists moving from one police station to another, attempting to influence police officers through blackmail on social media in order to bend the law,” the commissioner said.

The police commissioner, however, commended the leadership of the Uvwie Kingdom for allowing the police to carry out their duties without interference.

He noted that the absence of political or community pressure on investigators in the area had contributed to a noticeable decline in criminal activities within Uvwie local government area.

Adesola also praised the monarch for establishing a palace security committee that helps monitor criminal activities in the community, advising residents to discreetly channel intelligence and crime-related information directly to the area commander or divisional police officers.

The commissioner raised concerns over the rising menace of drug abuse, cultism and kidnapping across parts of the state, calling for stronger collaboration between the police, traditional institutions and community leaders.

He urged parents to take responsibility for guiding their children, stressing that families must not protect or encourage criminal behaviour.

According to him, community leaders must also properly screen commercial motorcycle operators, warning that some “okada” riders are used by criminal gangs for surveillance and escape during operations.

Adesola further sounded the alarm over the infiltration of criminal elements from neighbouring countries and the growing influence of social media in spreading criminal tendencies among youths.

Responding, the Ovie of Uvwie Kingdom, Emmanuel Sideso Abe 1, blamed rising crime partly on the erosion of respect for traditional institutions, saying this had weakened their ability to discipline erring youths.

The monarch also expressed concern that suspects arrested in communities sometimes return shortly after their release, threatening those who reported them to security agencies.

He further lamented that traditional rulers who attempt to clamp down on criminal elements are sometimes summoned by the police or challenged by human rights groups, making it harder to enforce discipline.

According to him, closer cooperation between security agencies and traditional institutions remains key to tackling crime effectively.

During the visit to the temporary office of the newly created Effurun Area Command, the Area Commander, Aliyu Shaba, described Effurun as a strategic commercial hub with complex security challenges requiring proactive policing.

Shaba appealed for the repair of the command’s Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC), which he said had been out of service for a long time despite being critical for high-risk operations and patrols.

He also requested the deployment of additional inspectors and rank-and-file officers to strengthen the command’s operational capacity and improve communication among patrol teams responding to distress calls.