Police reportedly torture chicken thieves to death in Benue

Fingers are being pointed to some officers and men of the Bauchi State Police Command for torturing two suspected chicken thieves to death.

According to a human rights group, Prison Inmate Development Initiative, a third suspect had been admitted into a hospital after the torture episode.

In a petition dated July 23, 2020, signed by Mbami Iliya and addressed to the Bauchi State Commissioner of Police, Lawal Jimeta, the group said the suspects were arrested on the allegation that they stole 24 chickens belonging to a retired police officer.

He gave the names of the tortured suspects as Ibrahim Kapala, Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulwahab Bello.

He said, “From our findings, the victims allegedly confessed to stealing five chickens and they also took the police to the buyer.

“The said buyer had already slaughtered one out of the five chickens while the remaining four were recovered. The buyer was ordered to pay for the five chickens again at the rate of N2,000, which he did and also paid for his bail.”

He added that the policemen ordered the suspects to pay for the remaining six untraced chickens pointing out that the suspects paid a total sum of N 22,000 for the chickens and N8,000 as bail.

“However, despite fulfilling the bail condition, they were denied bail and thereafter the police subjected them to inhuman and degrading torture.

“Due to the torture, one Ibrahim Kapala (27) lost his life in the process. Due to severe torture, one Ibrahim Babangida also injured his spinal cord, neck, two arms and left leg. Then  Abdulwahab Bello lost his two legs due to  torture.

“Findings show that they were thereafter dumped in their respective homes and were tagged armed robbers. Our investigation also showed that the policemen denied beating them and claimed that it was those they went to rob that killed Ibrahim Kapala.”

But the Bauchi State Police Command denied the allegations.

The Police Public Relations Officer of the command, DSP Ahmed Wakili, said, “The three suspects were mobbed when they broke into a farm and stole a number of chickens after they beat and almost killed the security guard at the farm.”