20/05/2025
Disturbing reports have emerged from Aba, Abia State, where residents allege rampant abuse by operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Aba North. Multiple victims claim they were unlawfully arrested, detained without due process, and extorted under threats and violence.
One victim, who shared his experience after release on Sunday 18th May detailed a harrowing ordeal. He said he was randomly arrested, accused of filming the squad's operations, and held without access to legal representation or family.
“They arrested me for allegedly recording their operations—where they stop people on bikes, seize phones from passersby, and demand ₦50,000. If you refuse, they take you to the station and demand ₦300,000 or more,” he recounted.
According to the victim, the officers boasted that they report directly to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), claiming immunity from oversight—even the Abia State Commissioner of Police can’t question them.
“I was beaten for refusing to unlock my phone. Officer Dan, the 2YC leading the team, assaulted me in his office. He said I could report to human rights organizations, but nothing would happen. He told me Aba is not Lagos, and threatened to kill me. He said, ‘I’ll keep you in the cell until Tuesday and no one will know.’ He did—five hours passed before my family found out where I was, thanks to witnesses who saw the arrest and called my family.
The victim was reportedly denied water, phone calls, and access to legal help at the RRS station, located within the Aba North Local Government Secretariat. Officer Dan allegedly threatened to secure a court order to unlock and delete any footage from his phone without his consent. He was detained without being profiled or asked to write a statement.
He further revealed that over 25 youths were being held at the same RRS facility, some for weeks or months, without trial or family contacts, without statements or profiling—raising fears that many reported missing persons in Abia may actually be in secret police custody.
“Some detainees said they were asked to pay between ₦30,000 and ₦1.5 million to be released. If you don’t pay, they label you a ‘Yahoo boy.’
> “This is a business for them. They seize your phone, either force you to open it or open it without your consent, then demand millions. They say nothing will happen because they report directly to the IG,” he said.
He also described a pattern where detainees were kept incommunicado until they agreed on a settlement fee. Only then would officers allow contact with family or friends to arrange payment, typically via personal POS machines used by the officers themselves.
Many detainees are reportedly in poor health and urgently need medical care, yet remain cut off from help while their families are unaware of their whereabouts.
These allegations expose serious human rights violations and demand immediate scrutiny of the RRS Aba North operations. Human rights organizations and legal advocates are calling for an urgent investigation and national intervention to address what they describe as systemic abuse, impunity, and extortion by the police unit.
Concerned citizen
Ndubuisi John
