• Two civilian accomplices on the run

From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa

Four police officers attached to the Zone 16 Command of the Nigerian Police Force have landed in trouble following allegations over their involvement in the abduction and extortion of N20 million from suspected Internet fraudsters, commonly known as “Yahoo Yahoo Boys”, in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

The Assistant-Inspector- General of Police Benjamin Nebolisa Okoro was said to have ordered the arrest and investigation over the allegations.

According to investigations the suspects following a tip-off on Monday had stormed the residence of some suspected Yahoo boys who are Bayelsa State but were on vacation from Ghana.

The suspects were reportedly arrested and then blindfolded to a hotel in Azikoro town, a suburb of Yenagoa, where they allegedly extorted money from them.

“The most senior among the accused personnel is a police inspector. They threatened to kill the boys and claimed someone from Ghana accused them of theft. They threatened to kill them if they didn’t part with 50 Million. The boys later succumbed and agreed to part with 20 Million. They took them to GTB and Access Bank along Sani Abacha Road and made two separate transfers of N7m and N13m,” a police source said.

Further findings revealed that a friend of the victims who learnt about their ordeal decided to spill the beans when the Policemen came back on Tuesday to demand another N10 million.

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The whistle-blower was said to have called the Nigeria police headquarters number advertised to report cases of misconduct which received the attention of the police echelon.

A police source following interrogation of the suspects’ preliminary findings indicted the Policemen for misconduct.

“They were not members of a team. They work at various units but do shady deals together. In the past, they were nearly killed by some military officers along Agbura road in Ogbia Local Government Area where they mounted illegal roadblocks to extort oil bunkerers. The arrested Police Personnel confessed that two civilian accomplices set up the Yahoo boys for the alleged extortion scam.”

The source confirmed that the accused police personnel have returned the N2.5 million each being money made from the Yahoo boys extortion deal, while one of the civilians reportedly returned his share of the deal but is still at large and the other one who was arrested and granted bail but has absconded.

Confirming the incident, the Public Relations Officer, Zone 16, Mrs Ikwo Kevin, said some fraudsters known as Yahoo boys defrauded some foreigners of a sum of $28,000 and some Policemen got them arrested.

“The fraudsters confessed to the crime and pleaded for leniency but instead of them to do the needful they compromised by collecting money from them, so when the AIG got wind of the matter, he ordered their arrest and detention.

Information we got was that the police got 10 million while the informant also got 10 million of his own share, but has eventually returned N7.5 million from his hideout and is still on the run. The money they got was also recovered, while the investigation is still on.