Osun State Police Command on Friday said it had identified and detained five operatives arrested along Osogbo/Iwo Road for extorting the sum of N75,000 from three travellers.

The police operatives were caught in the act by the Speaker of Osun State House of Assembly, Mr. Wale Egbedun, who subsequently reported them to the state Police Commissioner, Kehinde Longe.

Giving further details about how the policemen were caught, a statement by Olamide Tiamiyu, the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, said the convoy conveying him and some state lawmakers was stopped by the victims of the extortion, who were said to be heading to Osogbo to participate in the grand finale of the annual Osun-Osogbo festival.

Tiamiyu said, “The victims who were travelling for the Osun Osogbo festival scheduled for tomorrow (Saturday), narrated their ordeal in the hands of the officers. They added that the policemen, who refused all pleas to allow them to continue their journey, eventually forced three people among them to make a transfer of N25,000 each.

“When approached to hear their sides of the story, the leader of the police team confirmed to the Speaker that they collected the quoted amount from the three commuters and pleaded for forgiveness.

“The Speaker then called the Osun State Commissioner of Police, Kehinde Longe, to report the conduct of his personnel to him, who immediately summoned the officers to the state headquarters for possible disciplinary action.”

Reacting to the development in another statement, the Police Public Relations Officer of Osun Command, Yemisi Opalola, said the erring operatives had been identified and detained.

Opalola, who declared that the state Commissioner of Police would not tolerate any act of indiscipline and unprofessional conduct exhibited by any member of the Nigeria Police under his watch, said the operatives were already undergoing orderly room trial.

“The police officers involved in this unprofessional and unethical behaviour have been identified, arrested and detained.

“The Police Command frowned on and condemned the act in totality as the erring police officers have been detained since Thursday, 10/08/2023 and are undergoing investigation and eventual disciplinary procedure of orderly room trial for their unprofessional conduct, while the senior officer among them has been queried accordingly,” Opalola said.

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