Police defy IG’s order to release seized vehicles

The Imo State Police Command has defied an order by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, to release some seized vehicles belonging to Oshodi Motors in Benin, Edo State.

The command had, on October 17, 2024, raided the Oshodi car stand in Benin, where they carted away five vehicles valued at N132 million to Owerri, the Imo State capital.

Following petitions to the IGP from the Executive Director of the company, Anthony Osayande, through his lawyer, the IGP Monitoring Unit in Abuja directed that the vehicles be released to the owner after a thorough investigation revealed that he is the genuine owner.

But despite this order, the Imo Police Command has remained adamant and has refused to respect the IGP’s directive.

Findings revealed that the vehicles in question are already being used by some personnel of the anti-kidnapping team of the command who went on a mission.

The team, code-named “Tiger Base,” is headed by Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Oladimeji Adeyeyiwa, who sought to know the media’s interest in the matter and stated they would call for findings.

Adeyeyiwa further told The Guardian that upon his return to Owerri, he invited the state governor, Hope Uzodinma, to the command to inspect the vehicles, claiming they were illegally acquired, even though the owner had tendered original import duty and clearance documents.

The state commissioner of police, Aboki Danjuma, had referred our reporter to Adeyeyiwa, who insisted that he does not take orders from Abuja.

Mr. Osayande, who suspects that his ordeal is a setup, since he has proven beyond measure that he owns the three Lexus SUVs and two Mercedes Benz GLKs, is pleading with the IGP to give a final order to his men to release his cars to him in order to save his business from collapsing.