DPO removed, others face orderly room trial for extorting phone dealer

Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa, has ordered the removal of the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Meiran Police Station, Tony Abutu, over alleged extortion.

It was on Wednesday reported how Abutu allegedly led a team of policemen attached to his station to extort a phone dealer, Ibrahim Saliu, of N200,000.

Saliu said that trouble started when the policemen detained him and his brother, Olaiya Murtala, for not providing an identity card or the receipts for the iPhones found with his brother.

He said after the DPO ordered his men to detain him and his brother for stealing and armed robbery, he later asked them to pay N500,000 to secure their freedom.

He said they begged the DPO until they settled for N200,000 and that one of the policemen led him to a nearby POS operator where he withdrew N180,000 in addition to the N20,000 he had on him and handed it over to the policemen before they were released.

But in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) handle on Wednesday, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, said the CP had ordered the DPO’s removal.

He added that all the officers involved had been identified and they were already facing orderly room trial.

The Superintendent of Police wrote, “CP Idowu Owohunwa has ordered the immediate removal of DPO Meiran for leadership dereliction and supervisory ineptitude.

“Meanwhile, all the officers involved have been identified and are currently at the command headquarters where their orderly room trial has commenced.”