Rauf Oyewole, Bauchi
A Bauchi businessman, Jibrin Dahiru has petitioned the Bauchi State Police Commissioner, Auwal Musa Mohammed over an alleged brutality, torture and intimidation.
According to the complainant's petition made available to the press on Thursday, MM Maidoki Esq and Nasiru Abubakar Esq, said their client Dahiru was violently harassed, tortured and assaulted by one of the Command's personnel, one ASP Abdulmalik Tukur Abubakar of the Command Rapid Response Squad (RRS).
The petition reads in parts: "Our client informed us that sometimes in March 2024, while in his shop at Wunti Market Bauchi and on the ordinary cause of his business, some Okada riders stationed in front of his shop thereby blocking his shop's view from the sight of customers and our client urged them to stay aside, which they did but for one of them who said he is not going anywhere, an affront which led to verbal exchange of words between the Okada rider and our client while some onlookers are intervening for amicable solution.
"That while the conversation is a going concern, a man later to be identified as ASP Abdulmalik Tukur Abubakar (hereinafter referred to as the respondent) approached our client unofficially out of the blue and started abusing our client saying in Hausa “dan bura ubanka kai waye Kafi karfin a baka hakuri” (to hell with you. Who are you to deserve an apology) and went ahead to slap our client and our client replied back with a slap in an ordinary man's inanner of responding to an assault.
"That since the incidence between our client and the respondent, our client remain on the run, for the fact that, the said respondent later revealed his status as a police officer and kept chasing after our client with a view to arrest him and our client, being tired of the endless running and to be able to attend his business, he reported himself at the Police Headquarters to the said ASP and was told to go till he is called upon," it said.
The lawyers said that both the client and respondent met at the police SIB unit where they agreed to release the complainant but “after a superior to the respondent called, Sani left, the respondent despite being a complainant, maintained that he is not going to release our client as directed by his superior and asked our client's elder brother to come back the following day for the release of our client and on Sunday the 14th day of April, 2024, in the morning, the elder brother to our client called the respondent severally but the respondent said when he is ready for the bail he is going to inform our client's elder brother.”
The solicitors added that, “The ASP handcuffed our client and hanged him even when our client is telling him that ‘I am no longer under your control since our statements were taken, you should wait for the outcome of investigation’ but lo and behold, the ASP in his determination to extra judicially torture our client, picked a plyer and went ahead to pinch our client's nails with the plyer to the extent that our client had to paint because of excessive pain and was left in the cold of blood."
They argue that: “On Monday morning, 15th day of April, 2014, the respondent visited our client at Tambari station where after seeing strain of blood on our client's cloth, the respondent personally brought cloth, directed our client to change into the said cloth he brought and then he personally again took our client's cloth that was bathed with blood (containing N70,000 stocked in the trouser) and the respondent personally again returned the cloth washed and ironed but without the N70,000 and the respondent picked our client to a hospital at State Low-cost Bauchi for treatment of wounds and injection.
"From the hospital at state low-cost, the respondent took our client to Wunti market while being handcuffed and paraded him to people at the market to showcase his gallantry, where from the market, he again took our client to Government House, Bauchi and paraded our client again to some police officers showcasing his gallantry and he later returned our client back to the S.I.B office,” they said.
A copy of medical report from the Bauchi State Specialist Hospital on the complainant showed that victim was traumatised multiple bruises with hematoma, blunt admonina trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder.
When contacted for reaction, the Command PPRO, SP Ahmed Wakili wrote that,"I am out of town for another official assignment with the CP. I have not seen the petition yet, as soon as I lay my hands on it, I will respond."
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