‘Armed robbers would soon visit him,’ police officer captured on video telling local council chairman

The Police Command in Cross River State has commenced an investigation into an alleged threat by a police officer attached to the Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU) against James Anam, the chairman of Calabar Municipality Local Government Council.

Sunday Eitokpah, the police spokesperson in the state, disclosed this in a statement on Friday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the officer was allegedly heard in the viral video threatening Mr Anam that “armed robbers would soon visit him” during an altercation with VCRU operatives in Calabar.

Mr Eitokpah, an assistant superintendent of police, said the video, which had been circulating on social media, purportedly captured an altercation between the council chairman and VCRU operatives at an undisclosed stop-and-search point within the Calabar metropolis.

According to him, the incident occurred about three weeks ago during a stop-and-search operation.

He said preliminary information available to the Command indicated that the circumstances surrounding the encounter had not been fully established.

“The Commissioner of Police, Ajo Ordue, has directed a discreet and impartial investigation to establish the facts, circumstances, and conduct of all persons involved,” he said.

The police spokesperson said the command has commenced the process of inviting Mr Anam and the concerned VCRU operatives to provide their respective accounts of the incident.

He said the officer was purportedly heard in the video making the statement that armed robbers would soon visit the chairman.

“However, the command has not established the circumstances or intent behind the statement,” Mr Eitokpah said.

He assured the public that the investigation would be conducted professionally and objectively, with due regard to the rights of all parties.

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He added that any allegation of misconduct established during the investigation would be dealt with in accordance with extant laws and police regulations.

The command urged the public to refrain from drawing conclusions based solely on the circulating video, noting that the footage might not capture the full circumstances surrounding the encounter.

It appealed to the public to allow the investigation to run its course.