A senior officer of the Nigeria Police Force, Nkeiruka Nwode, has denied allegations of misconduct following criticism by activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore.
Nwode’s response came after Sowore criticised her on social media on Monday over her alleged role in a case involving the withdrawal of more than N100 million from a suspect’s bank account.
In a statement issued on Monday, the police officer said the incident began on January 21, 2023, when a lawyer, Barrister Nweke, and a woman identified as Onyinye Ekwueme reported to her office that two brothers, Chibuike and Tochukwu Ekwueme, had been arrested by a joint task force but their family did not know their whereabouts.
According to her, the complainants also alleged that large sums of money were being withdrawn from one of the suspects’ bank accounts by unknown persons.
Nwode said she immediately escalated the matter to the then Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 13, Abutu Yaro, who contacted the then Anambra State Commissioner of Police, Echeng Echeng, to confirm that the suspects were in police custody.
She said the officer in charge of the Rapid Response Squad in Awkuzu later confirmed that the suspects were being held by the unit and disclosed that a National Youth Service Corps member, Nnamdi Daniel Emeh, was suspected to have withdrawn the money.
According to Nwode, investigators later traced about N46 million of the funds to a Bureau De Change operator in Onitsha, who allegedly said the account had been provided by a Department of State Services officer identified as Paul Okorie.
She said the Bureau De Change operator and a bank employee were subsequently arrested during the investigation, while a court order was obtained to freeze accounts linked to the suspected transactions.
Nwode added that the corps member later fled but was eventually traced to the Benin Republic, where he was arrested and brought back to Nigeria.
She, however, alleged that instead of being commended for her role in the investigation, she has been subjected to blackmail and media attacks.
Nwode said she decided to respond publicly to the allegations following the criticisms circulating on social media.
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