Police Reject VDM’s Claim, Demand Proof Officers Aid Kidnappers

The Nigeria Police Force has challenged social media activist Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), to provide evidence backing his allegation that some police officers at checkpoints provide kidnappers with information about travellers.

VDM made the allegation at the ongoing Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, claiming that police officers manning checkpoints along major highways identify wealthy travellers and relay information about their identities and movements to kidnappers and bandits to facilitate their abduction for ransom.

Reacting to the allegation in a statement issued on Thursday by the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, the police invited VDM to submit whatever evidence he has to support the claim.

The Force said any information provided would be treated with urgency and thoroughly investigated.

“The Nigeria Police Force hereby invites Mr. Martins Vincent Otse to produce, without delay, the evidence upon which he based these serious allegations,” the statement said.

The police specifically requested evidence showing that officers at checkpoints identify wealthy individuals and subsequently transmit information about them to kidnappers for the purpose of facilitating their abduction.

The Force said it takes allegations of misconduct against its personnel seriously but warned against making sweeping accusations without evidence.

It said police officers deployed to checkpoints and other locations nationwide are tasked with preventing crime, detecting criminal activities and protecting citizens, rather than facilitating kidnappings.

According to the police, officers themselves routinely confront kidnappers, bandits and other violent criminals, with several personnel having been ambushed, attacked and killed in the line of duty.

The Force also said police stations, formations and operational assets have been targeted by terrorists, kidnappers and other criminal groups.

It further defended its personnel, saying hundreds of thousands of officers work daily under difficult, underfunded and dangerous conditions, including at checkpoints exposed to criminal attacks.

The police said blanket accusations portraying the entire institution as complicit in kidnapping were unfair to officers serving with integrity and could demoralise personnel.

However, the Force acknowledged that individual officers found to have compromised their duties would face disciplinary measures and prosecution where appropriate.

“Where individual officers are found to have compromised their duty, they will face the full weight of internal discipline and the law,” the statement said.

The police maintained that an entire institution should not be condemned based on a public allegation made without supporting evidence.

The Force also called on members of the public with credible information about police misconduct to report such cases through appropriate channels to enable investigation and prosecution.

It said it remained committed to transparency and accountability and would continue to investigate credible allegations of misconduct, regardless of how they emerged.

The police, however, urged Nigerians to distinguish between legitimate criticism of security agencies and unsubstantiated allegations, warning that false claims could undermine public trust and national security.