Published:
The police deems the information as classified.
Ten days after armed men killed four police men while trying to kidnap a lawyer, the Nigerian Police Force, NPF, is yet to reveal the identity of the four officers and has no plans to do so.
The police officers were killed during the kidnap of senior lawyer, Mike Ozekhome, on the Benin-Auchi road, Edo State.
The Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, on Monday told PREMIUM TIMES that the Nigerian Police does not release names of its officers killed in the line of duty.
“We don’t give out the names of our police officers like that. Beyond being police officers, you know they have families; releasing the names of the deceased may bring harm to their families. So, we usually need the consent of their families before we give out their names. While some families don’t like it, some like it; so, we need to respect the wishes of their families. If they don’t give us the clearance we don’t give out their names,” Mr. Mba said.
Mr. Ozekhome and his driver were kidnapped on August 23 at the Ehor stretch of the Benin-Auchi motorway. The victims are yet to be released.
The spokesperson of the Edo State Police Command, Moses Eguavoen, disclosed that the police was currently investigating the kidnap and trying to ensure that the victims are released safely.
Mr. Eguavoen could not confirm if the kidnappers had demanded ransom for the radical lawyer.
“The issue of ransom is between the victim’s family and the kidnappers. It’s not an issue on which the police is often carried along, that’s why we cannot make any comment on that,” he said
Mr. Eguavoen urged members of the public to trust that the police would get to the root of the case with the victim’s safety as a priority.
“We’ll get to the root but most importantly the safety of the victim is paramount that is why we must play it cool. We don’t hurry over it. After the release of the victim, you see the police swinging into action and arresting some of them. We’ve done it before so, we are on it,” he said.
On the identity of the slain police officers, Mr. Eguavoen said, “The file of the names of the officers killed is no longer with me; it is on the (Commissioner of Police) CP’s desk. It’s purely an official matter and very classified information.”
Efforts by PREMIUM TIMES to reach the Commissioner of Police, Edo State, has been futile as the police boss did not return calls or respond to text messages sent to his phone.
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