Eagle Crack Police unit known as Commissioner’s Crack Squad was last Friday disbanded by the new Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, CP Eboka Friday, on the grounds of swelling complaints of human rights abuse by members of the public against the crack unit.
Soon after the crack unit relocated from Mile 1 Diobu, Port Harcourt, to headquarters of disbanded notorious Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) at Rupokwu in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area in January 2021, members of the public began to complain of professional misconduct and rights abuses by the crack unit replica of that of disband SARS.
Complaints by the public included alleged mounting of illegal roadblocks, harassment and extortion of motorists especially around Obiri -Ikwerre flyover, at Obio/Akpor Local Government Area under the guise of stop and search, unlawful detention, collection of huge amount of money for bail from cell inmates etc.
The latest one that drew widespread condemnation and attention of the new CP, Eboka Friday was the one in which some personnel of the unit allegedly at gunpoint took a Student of University of Port Harcourt to an ATM machine and ordered the victim simply identified as Victor to withdraw one hundred and twenty thousand naira and gave to them.
Victor in an interview with journalists disclosed that he reached his withdrawal limit after he withdrew 120,000 naira but had to call a friend to lend him thirty thousand naira which he transferred to an account provided by the officers who insisted he must give them one hundred and fifty thousand naira for no reason.
Victor’s only offence was that he came out by 11pm that night to look for food to buy before he was rounded up by the personnel of the crack unit who accused him of being an Internet fraudster in order to extort him.
Luck ran out of the personnel of Eagle Crack who allegedly extorted the money from the student as one of them forgot his phone inside the student’s vehicle which was used in tracking them.
The spokesperson of the Rivers State Police Command, SP Nnamdi Omoni, who confirmed the incident told journalists that the personnel of the unit who allegedly perpetrated the crime have been identified and would be arrested and dealt with in accordance to the law.
The particular case of extortion of the Uniport student and other complaints drew the anger of CP Eboka who moved quickly to disband the unit to avoid lost of trust by the public in his administration.
In disbanding the crack unit which intelligence sources revealed has been infiltrated by a good number of former officers of disbanded SARS, CP Eloka in a statement by SP Omoni, the command spokesperson, said “The dissolution is coming on the heels of complaints of unprofessional conduct exhibited by the personnel of the Unit.
Recall that the CP in his maiden press briefing on Tuesday promised to address all cases of infractions by the Police and increase supervision of the men, with a stern warning to deal with erring officers and hold DPOs/HODs vicariously liable.
The dissolution is with immediate effect and all Personnel attached to the Unit are to report to the Headquarters for redeployment.
The public is hereby enjoined to rekindle their trust in the Police, as the Command is committed to giving them improved Policing services that will stand the test of time”.
Meanwhile the news of the disbandment was received with mixed feelings by members of the public.
Some pundits argued that proper reorientation should have been carried out by the Police leadership for men of the unit and perpetrators of alleged rights abuses punished in accordance to the law rather than outright ban while some welcomed the disbandment of the unit.
