In 2012, Justice Afam Nwobodo of the Enugu High Court issued a warrant for the arrest of Mr. Sam Chukwu, who was then the Divisional Police Office at Awkunanaw. The warrant was issued after the then DPO ignored the court’s summons to appear before it for trial. Police authorities in Enugu told Justice Nwobodo that Mr. Chukwu escaped from his home as officers arrived to arrest him. For two and a half years, Mr. Chukwu remained a fugitive, failing to turn up in court even though “wanted” posters of him were posted both in Enugu and his hometown, Aninri, in Awgu local government area.
Three police sources in Lagos and Abuja have told SaharaReporters that rogue police officer, Sam Chukwu, accused of masterminding a vicious ring of kidnappers in Enugu State, has been posted to Lagos after the Mike Okiro-led Police Service Commission approved his promotion to the rank of assistant commissioner late last year. One of our sources said Mr. Chukwu had been deployed to the MSG department at the police headquarters annex in Lagos. “The MSG is a minor department in Lagos. But that is not the issue. The issue is that, if we are serious about cleaning up the image of the police force, as our IG says, then we should not be saddled with a man like Sam Chukwu,” said the source.
All three officers said they were dismayed that Inspector General of Police (IGP) Suleiman Abba and Mr. Okiro, a former IGP, were adamant about protecting and rewarding Sam Chukwu despite the officer’s implication in a series of heinous crimes.
[story_link align="left"]34129[/story_link]Prosecutors at the Ministry of Justice in Enugu believe that Mr. Chukwu was the sponsor of a group of junior police officers who engaged in widespread kidnap and murder in Enugu State. Two of such criminal elements under Mr. Chukwu’s control, Desmond Chinwuba and Ernest Okeke, have been named as the prime suspects in the 2009 kidnap and presumed murder of Lotachukwu (Lota) Ezeudu, then a 19-year-old 2nd year accountancy student at the University of Nigeria, Enugu campus. Mr. Okeke is in prison custody along with other accused persons, including Mr. Chukwu’s son, Nnaemeka, and Uche Moses Amajor, whose father owns Prosper Hotel in Trans Ekulu, Enugu.
In 2012, Justice Afam Nwobodo of the Enugu High Court issued a warrant for the arrest of Mr. Sam Chukwu, who was then the Divisional Police Office at Awkunanaw. The warrant was issued after the then DPO ignored the court’s summons to appear before it for trial in relation to the Lota Ezeudu case.
Police authorities in Enugu told Justice Nwobodo that Mr. Chukwu escaped from his home as officers arrived to arrest him. For two and a half years, Mr. Chukwu remained a fugitive, failing to turn up in court even though “wanted” posters of him were posted both in Enugu and his hometown, Aninri, in Awgu local government area.
In a bizarre move in July 2014, a few days to the end of his tenure, Nigeria’s immediate past IGP, Mohammed Dikko Abubakar, reinstated the fugitive Chukwu to the police and deployed him to the headquarters of the southeast command in Umuahia, Abia State, to assume the post of provost.
Despite extensive media coverage of Mr. Chukwu’s suspected involvement in the kidnap of Lota Ezeudu, who has not been seen since 2009, the Police Service Commission approved his promotion last year.
Two of our police sources accused Mr. Okiro and current IG Suleiman Abba of shielding a thoroughly discredited police officer. “When they promote a man like Sam Chukwu, they give all of us a bad name,” said one of the officers who spoke to us from Abuja.
A Lagos-based officer told SaharaReporters that Mr. Okiro had a long record of protecting criminals within the police force. According to him, Mr. Okiro steadfastly protected the late Vincent Orubebe, a corrupt police officer who once headed the special anti-robbery squad in Lagos. Mr. Orubebe, who was notorious for carrying out the extra-judicial execution of numerous people, including innocent men he arrested for cash, was suspended from the police after police authorities discovered that he accepted bribes from a gang of criminals to release one of their members from detention.
In a 2001 statement on Mr. Orubebe’s case, Mr. Okiro, who was then the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, stated that the police would not take the case to court based on “sentimental attack on the person of Orubebe.”
“As soon as he became IG, one of the first things Sir Okiro did was to recall Orubebe to service,” said the police officer. Mr. Orubebe died suddenly the day he was due to resume duties as a homicidal officer. Our police source alleged that the late Orubebe and other criminal officers funneled huge amounts of cash to Mr. Okiro who rewarded them by protecting them from being fired for their illegal and criminal activities. “Sir Okiro only understands the language of money. I can bet you that he collected a lot of money from Sam Chukwu, and that is why he promoted the man.”
A senior police source in Abuja echoed the charges, wondering how Mr. Okiro managed to reconcile his Catholic faith with his sponsorship of criminals. “Chief Okiro always reminds people that he is a knight in the Catholic Church,” said the source. He added, “Chief Okiro has built a whole church alone. And he openly donates millions of naira to different churches. But the fact of the matter is that it is stolen money or money received from cold-blooded criminals and killers like Sam Chukwu.Unless God can be deceived, people like Chief Okiro will answer for everything they have done.”
The three police sources said they look forward to a time when the police would not accommodate and encourage people like Mr. Chukwu.
An official of the Enugu State Ministry of Justice told SaharaReporters that he was not aware of Mr. Chukwu’s transfer to Lagos.
“We read from you people [SaharaReporters] about his promotion. And now we are hearing that they have sent him to Lagos. All we want is for the Inspector General, Suleiman Abba, and Sir Okiro to ask him [Sam Chukwu] to come to Enugu and answer the court,” said the official.