Stop searching people’sphones, it is unethical- Kwara police commissioner warns officers

The Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has warned officers in the command against searching people’s phones.

While addressing the officers at the command headquarters in Ilorin yesterday Thursday May 2nd, the police boss said it was unethical for officers to search people’s phone. He noted that most officers search phones with the intent to extort and that extortion is a criminal offence and will attract a stiff penalty.

“It’s unethical to seize and start searching anybody’s mobile phone on the road. The practice of searching the phone of an individual on the road for evidence of internet fraud amounts to conducting a roadside investigation,” he stated

Speaking further, he said

“In some of these cases, the young men mostly university undergraduates are made to part with a little or as much as N2,000 for their releases or the release of their phones. The Command frowns at this ugly trend and will stop at nothing in identifying and dealing with culprits of these acts. It becomes a criminal offence if that (search) intends in extortion or done with an intent to extort. Al policemen in this command, especially patrolmen are constantly being reminded that extortion while bearing firearms completes the ingredients of the offence of armed robbery.

“Henceforth, any policeman found to be engaging in any form of extortion while armed on the highway will be arrested, detained, tried and if found guilty, dismissed and charged with armed robbery,” he said.