Police demand N500k from Guardian reporter to track car theft suspect

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) police command, Abuja, is demanding the sum of N500,000 from a journalist with The Guardian newspaper, Mr. Msugh Ityokura, to investigate and track a car dealer who absconded with his car.

The suspect, Desmond Tersugh, also known as Cidex, who fled with the car, is said to have sold it to one Hassan Shehu, a fellow car dealer who claims he works with the Peace Corps of Nigeria in Abuja.

Shehu stated he bought the car for N1 million but has no evidence to prove the purchase, as there was no written agreement during the transaction.

Our reporter later encountered the car in Gwarimpa early March this year, and the case has been with the police, who have since reduced the amount to N200,000 to enable them to investigate and track the fleeing suspect.

The Investigating Police Officer (IPO), one DSP Ajia of the Commissioner of Police Monitoring Unit at the FCT command, is insisting that without payment, the police cannot work beyond a certain “limit.”

Sensing a compromise, Mr. Ityokura wrote to the office of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), hoping to get his car released to him, having been established as the genuine owner, but to no avail.

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The matter began while a former Commissioner of Police, Beneth Igwe, now an Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIGP), was serving as the FCT police commissioner.

The Complaint Response Unit (CRU) at the Force Headquarters, to which the case was assigned, cited logistical challenges, such as sustainable tracking, to apprehend the suspect before releasing the car, even though the police faulted the buyer for making payment without a proper written agreement and witnesses.

The white BMW 3 Series, still at the FCT police command, has already been vandalised by the same police who have refused to release it to the rightful owner.

At the last check, the car’s mini rear-side glass was broken, and the doors were left open to remove the battery, as explained by a police officer.

“My people will never stop. They broke the glass and opened it so they could steal the battery. We’ve been arresting them like that,” he said.

The FCT Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Josephine Ade, in her efforts to help resolve the matter, directed our reporter to the head of CRU, CSP Mustafa Sani, but no positive outcome has emerged given the police’s lukewarm attitude.

The Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Muyiwa Adejobi, has not picked up or returned calls regarding the matter over the period.