In a detailed petition dated December 15, 2025, and addressed to the IGP at the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, RULAAC alleged that influential suspects and officers attached to the IGP Monitoring Unit are working to frustrate the prosecution of suspects already indicted by the police Homicide Department.
A human rights organisation, the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC) has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, accusing some senior police officers of attempting to subvert a concluded murder investigation involving the killing of a 19-year-old male in Enugu State.
In a detailed petition dated December 15, 2025, and addressed to the IGP at the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, RULAAC alleged that influential suspects and officers attached to the IGP Monitoring Unit are working to frustrate the prosecution of suspects already indicted by the police Homicide Department.
The petition, copied to the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), centres on the killing of a 19-year-old, Nnamdi, who died after a violent attack on his family home in Awgu, Enugu State.
According to RULAAC, the chain of events began after the lawful arrest of one Emmanuel Okeke by officers attached to the Force Intelligence Department (FID), Abuja. The arrest was reportedly carried out by Mr. Jonathan Onuoha, a police operative involved in the investigation.
RULAAC alleged that shortly after the arrest, Emmanuel Okeke’s younger brother, Ifeanyi Okeke, issued a direct threat.
“On 6 May 2025, at about 1:42 a.m., Mr. Ifeanyi Okeke placed a telephone call to Mr. Jonathan Onuoha and threatened that unless Emmanuel Okeke was released within 48 hours, ‘blood would flow,’” the petition stated. The organisation said the threat was swiftly carried out.
RULAAC told the IGP that “within minutes of this call,” Ifeanyi Okeke allegedly led a group of armed youths to the family residence of Mr. Onuoha.
“They were armed with axes and other dangerous weapons, damaged the gate, and attempted forcible entry into the compound,” RULAAC wrote.
Although Mr. Onuoha was not at home at the time, the attackers allegedly dragged out his elder sister and her children, who were visiting, and brutally assaulted them.
The injuries sustained during the attack later proved fatal for her 19-year-old son.
“As a result of the injuries inflicted during this violent attack, the woman’s 19-year-old son, Nnamdi, died on 8 May 2025 while receiving treatment at Beacon Hospital, Awgu,” the petition said.
RULAAC noted that the incident was reported at the Awgu Police Division, which initially took custody of the deceased’s remains before transferring the case to the Homicide Department of the Enugu State Police Command.
An autopsy was conducted, and investigators reportedly established a prima facie case of murder. The case was later taken over by the Homicide Unit at the Force Headquarters.
“The prime suspect, Mr. Ifeanyi Okeke, was arrested and, in his confessional statement, implicated Mr. Emmanuel Okeke and others,” RULAAC said, adding that homicide detectives “recommended prosecution for murder and advised the Legal Unit accordingly.”
Despite what RULAAC described as a “concluded homicide investigation,” the group warned that fresh moves were underway to derail the case.
“We are gravely concerned that there is now an active and coordinated attempt to truncate this murder case through the abuse of police processes,” the organisation stated.
According to RULAAC, officers attached to the IGP Monitoring Unit were allegedly induced with money to interfere with the investigation.
The group also claimed that a fresh petition accusing Mr. Onuoha of cyberbullying and character assassination had been introduced as a pretext to undermine the murder case.
“This collateral petition was allegedly sponsored by Mr. Emmanuel Okeke, who has been implicated in the murder investigation,” RULAAC alleged.
The organisation further accused the Commissioner of Police in charge of the IGP Monitoring Unit, alongside CSP Christopher Offor and Inspector Vivian Edeh, of taking “active steps to subvert this gruesome murder investigation.”
RULAAC claimed that, based on the new petition, the Monitoring Unit had secured a police signal to retrieve the murder case file from the Homicide Department at Force Headquarters.
“The apparent intention is to truncate prosecution and facilitate the release of the prime suspect, contrary to professional investigative conclusions,” the petition warned.
“Direct Assault on Due Process”
RULAAC described the alleged actions as “a direct assault on due process, professional policing standards, and the integrity of homicide investigations within the Nigeria Police Force.”
“No unit of the Nigeria Police Force is more professionally competent to investigate murder cases than the Homicide Unit,” the organisation stressed. “Allowing an administrative or monitoring unit to override a concluded homicide investigation on the basis of a collateral petition sets a dangerous precedent.”
The group warned that such actions could deepen public distrust in law enforcement
“This development sends a dangerous signal that wealth and influence can defeat accountability for murder,” RULAAC said.
In its petition, RULAAC urged the IGP to take immediate steps to safeguard the integrity of the case.
Among its demands, the organisation called on the police leadership to “immediately halt any interference with or withdrawal of the murder case file from the Homicide Department, Force Headquarters.”
It also demanded that “the murder case against Mr. Ifeanyi Okeke and all other implicated persons be promptly charged to court, in line with the homicide investigation findings.”
RULAAC further requested an internal investigation into the alleged conduct of officers of the IGP Monitoring Unit and asked for protection for Mr. Jonathan Onuoha and affected family members, whom it said remain under “credible threat to their lives.”
RULAAC Executive Director, Okechukwu Nwanguma, warned that the consequences of inaction would be far-reaching.
“Justice delayed or derailed in a murder case is justice denied, not only to the victim’s family but to society at large,” he said.
“The integrity of the Nigeria Police Force and public confidence in law enforcement depend on urgent and decisive intervention.”