By Chioma Okezie-Okeh and Lawrence Enyoghasu
Dr Chinwike Oke-Nwosu, a United Kingdom-based Nigerian, witnessed a popular joke in Nigeria that ‘No be person wey call police, dey win case,’ which means the accuser is not assured of victory in Nigeria.
The table-turning matter started in February 2022, in his hometown in Amawbia, in Awka South Local Government Area of Anambra state, where he had gone to supervise an ongoing construction on his site, what Oke-Nwosu least expected awaited him.
The matter almost saw him being thrown into prison over alleged trump-up charges against him by one Mr Nwosu Tochukwu and a policeman, Ali Famous, an assistant superintendent of police, attached to the Zone 13 command, Ukpo-Dunnukofia, Anambra State.
It all started when Oke-Nwosu confronted Tochukwu for allegedly encroaching on his piece of land, which he later reported to the police station.
Oke-Nwosu complained that Tochukwu had used his only access road and land to build a local petroleum depot. He highlighted the danger and illegality of such inflammable products.
He further alleged that Tochukwu, the alleged owner of the depot, demolished his security wire walls last October and further threatened him with a pump action gun.
The matter, according to him was reported at the Zone 13 command, consequent upon which the owner of the depot was arrested but immediately released on bail.
Oke-Nwosu alleged that the case turned against him when the investigation police officer, Ali, assigned to look into the matter, especially the use of a gun to threaten him, allegedly compromised because he did not give him (Ali) the sum of N300,000 demanded as mobilisation fee.
He said: “When I could not afford the N300,000 demanded by Ali, he compromised the investigation and told me that he had conducted a private investigation and discovered that the unlicensed pump action gun owned by Tochukwu, belongs to the town’s vigilante and that he was told that my damaged wall fence was done by him.
“He unprofessionally went to arrest the suspect without a search warrant, thereby deliberately refusing to search his apartment. Ali (policeman) collected N35,000 (showing evidence of the withdrawal) from me, which led to the release of Tochukwu.
“He came back to me saying he had pleaded with the suspect to sell the small portion of land used for the illegal petroleum product to me for N150,000.00 together with the one-room bungalow on it.
“When all efforts to defraud and extort me failed, Ali turned hostile and openly conspired with Tochukwu to extricate him from the investigation. To date, an investigation in the matter is still pending without result.”
He added that Tochukwu’s get-out-of-jail card was his claim that he had used the land for community development. He said: “Tochukwu claimed he was the new chairman of the clan and wanted to create a new road on my land. While all these were going on, Tochukwu sent some workers to attack me. I reported the forceful invasion of workers to the divisional police officer, at the Central Police Station, Awka. The DPO, who visited the scene, instructed one Wasinu to investigate the matter immediately.
“While the investigation was ongoing, Ali sent one Inspector Yomi to invite me to Zone 13. I followed them thinking it was in connection with my earlier complaint, without knowing that Ali had connived and conspired with Tochukwu to concoct trumped-up charges against me.
“I was embarrassed and detained overnight and when my lawyer came the next day, Ali, through the said Yomi, collected N80,000 forcibly, before admitting me to bail.
“On March 4, 2022, I reported to Zone 13 as requested and was forced to change my flight to Abuja from March 4 to March 5. While I was in the office of CSP Ubi with my witness to prove my innocence of the false allegation by the suspect, Tochukwu walked in with Ali and some thugs whom I have not met in my life as witnesses that they saw when I threatened Tochukwu
“Again, Ali connived with Tochukwu with another charge and complaint against me because he was briefed to detain me till Monday, to miss my flight back to London. When CSP Ubi advised Ali to let me go on self-recognizance, Ali felt very angry but conferred with Inspector Yomi and they issued two different arraignment notices to appear in Court on Monday, March 7, 2022. This was to ensure I missed my flight back to the United Kingdom.”
He added that there was no investigation into the allegation leveled against him before he was charged to court with charges numbers MAW/72C/2022 and MAW/75C/2022 between IGP Vs C.J. Oke Nwosu and C.O.P Vs. C J Oke Nwosu respectively.
Oke-Nwosu said the calculated move to send him to jail failed, through the intervention of the Attorney General of Anambra State and the office of the Directorate of Public Prosecution, which exonerated him from the culpability of charges against him.
He, therefore, called on the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 13, AIG Umar Muri, to institute an independent investigation into the matter, especially the alleged role played by the assistant superintendent of police, to set the standard for a disciplined Nigeria Police Force
The petition signed by Justice Ogugwo read: “our client suffered psychologically and emotionally in the hands of Ali Famous. We pray you use your office to investigate the complaint of our client against ASP Ali and the owner of the petroleum product built on the only access way to our client’s house”.
However, when Daily Sun contacted Mr. Nwosu Tochukwu, he described the allegations against him as false.
Reacting to the construction of a petroleum depot close to Oke-Nwosu’s building, Tochukwu said: “Can you build a petroleum depot inside your house? Does he know what a filling station is, talk more of a petroleum depot.
“All the allegations are false. I have been in court for five to six cases with him, over these false allegations.”
Also reacting to the allegation of threatening Oke-Nwosu with a weapon, he said, “I have said there is nothing like that. He reported to the AIG zone 13 on that and I was arrested around 4am on December 18, 2021. The police came searching but did not find anything incriminating
“I am the chairman of the community, and as such, I am the number one security officer in the village.
“He was arrested for false allegations, coupled with the hired assassins he brought to kill me. I have evidence of the thugs he sent to kill me. But he ran to the DPP to sideline the case.”
Initial efforts to reach the police public relations officer, zone 13, Nkiruka Nwode, failed until last Thursday. She said she was not aware of the matter, informing that she just arrived into the country the previous day.