Disturbing allegations of widespread abuse and extortion have emerged against operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Aba North, in Abia State. Residents and victims claim the squad engages in unlawful arrests, arbitrary detention, and threats of violence to extort money.
One victim, who was recently released, recounted a harrowing experience from his arrest on Sunday, May 18. He stated he was randomly apprehended and accused of filming the RRS in action. The officers, he alleged, stop individuals on motorcycles, seize phones from passersby, and initially demand ₦50,000. Refusal, he said, leads to detention at the station and demands for ₦300,000 or more.
Claims of Impunity and Brutality
The victim reported that the officers boast about reporting directly to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), claiming immunity from oversight, even from the Abia State Commissioner of Police.
He detailed how he was beaten by Officer Dan, the team’s second-in-command, for refusing to unlock his phone. “He said I could report to human rights organizations, but nothing would happen,” the victim recounted. He further alleged that Officer Dan threatened to kill him, stating, “I’ll keep you in the cell until Tuesday and no one will know.” The victim was indeed held for five hours before his family, alerted by witnesses, discovered his whereabouts
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Denial of Rights and Secret Detentions
During his detention at the RRS station, located within the Aba North Local Government Secretariat, the victim was allegedly denied water, phone calls, and access to legal representation. Officer Dan reportedly threatened to obtain a court order to unlock and delete any footage from his phone without consent.
The victim was detained without being profiled or asked to provide a statement.
Mass Detentions and Extortion Racket
The victim’s account shed light on a grim situation within the facility, where he claimed over 25 youths were being held, some for weeks or even months, without trial, family contact, statements, or profiling. This raises serious concerns that many reported missing persons in Abia State might be in secret police custody.
“Some detainees said they were asked to pay between ₦30,000 and ₦1.5 million to be released,” he revealed. “If you don’t pay, they label you a ‘Yahoo boy.'” He described the operation as a “business” where officers seize phones, force or illegally access them, and then demand large sums of money, allegedly confident that “nothing will happen because they report directly to the IG.”
Detainees are reportedly held incommunicado until they agree to a settlement fee. Only then are they allowed to contact family or friends to arrange payment, often facilitated through personal POS machines used by the officers themselves. Many detainees are reportedly in poor health and in urgent need of medical care, yet remain cut off from help and their families are unaware of their whereabouts.
Call for Investigation
These grave allegations highlight severe human rights violations and demand immediate scrutiny of the RRS Aba North operations. Human rights organizations and legal advocates are urgently calling for an investigation and national intervention to address what they describe as systemic abuse, impunity, and extortion by this police unit.