Reactions have continued to trail the matchet cuts on three innocent young men in Port Harcourt, Solomon Cletus, Opuwari Bibobra and Michael Ikeji by Police Officers from Eagle crack(Commissioner Squad) unit of the Rivers State Police command.
Speaking on the development, a right activist and legal practitioner, Arochukwu Paul Ogbona (Esq), in an interview with National Network explained that the alleged use of cutlass and matchet by the officer to cut or flog suspects runs contrary to the anti-torture act signed by Muhammadu Buhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2017.
According to the rights activist, the “Anti-Torture Act,2017 makes a comprehensive provisions for penalizing the acts of torture and other cruel ,inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, and prescribes penalties for the commission of such acts”.
He condemned the alleged use of matchet to cut the three young men by the Police officers.
Meanwhile, Opuwari Bibobra, one of the victims of alleged matchet cuts by the security personnel in an interview with National Network said “We were at the front of our compound at Manilla Pepple Street, D-Line Port Harcourt at about 5:30PM in the evening when Police Officers from Eagle crack unit alighted from their vehicle and asked us to lie down”.
Continuing he said “we tried to enquire from them what our offence was, only for them to use matchet to flog and cut us. Due to fear of being killed we followed them to their station at Mile 1 Diobu, he revealed.
According to Opuwari, the Police officers continued to torture them in the station that they should accept that they were kidnappers and criminals. He explained that succor came their way last Thursday, which was after four days in detention, when their lawyer intervened and secured their unconditional release from detention facility of the Eagle Crack.
Solomon Cletus, another victim of the matchet cut explained that due to the incident he lost a major contract as the officers seized their phones and refused them making contact with people. Cletus told our reporter that they did not eat or drink water all through the time they were detained.
Another victim, Michael Ikeji told our reporter that they are still receiving treatment from Rivers State University Teaching Hospital where they were admitted after their release.
Our reporter who saw the victims reports that injuries from matchet cuts were seen all over their body.
The Public Relations Officer of Rivers State Police Command, DSP Nnamdi Omoni was yet to respond to text messages sent to his mobile line on enquiry into the incident and possession of matchets by Policemen.
