Tears and Outrage as Amnesty International Exposes Alleged Atrocities at Imo Police Unit

 


Stakeholders from the South-East region — including traditional rulers, human rights advocates, legal practitioners, and representatives of civil society and non-governmental organisations — were reportedly moved to tears during a public presentation detailing alleged human rights violations by a police unit in Imo State.

The report, presented in Enugu by Amnesty International, detailed allegations of torture, rape, prolonged detention without trial, and extrajudicial killings at the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Nigeria Police Force in Owerri, popularly known as 'Tiger Base.' The unit operates under the Imo State Command.

Titled “Tiger Base of Atrocities: Human Rights Violations by Nigeria Police Anti-Kidnapping Unit in Owerri,” the report covered investigations conducted between May 2025 and February 2026. It was presented by Amnesty International’s Country Director, Isa Sanusi.

According to the report, officers attached to the unit allegedly engaged in prolonged arbitrary detention, extortion, excessive bail demands, enforced disappearances, and the undocumented removal of children from their mothers.

The organisation asserted that many detainees were neither permitted to make formal statements nor brought before a court of competent jurisdiction, thereby facilitating indefinite detention. Some individuals were reportedly held for weeks or months without charge, while others were alleged to have been killed.

Amnesty International further stated that detainees were subjected to severe forms of torture, including suspension by hanging, beatings, waterboarding, prolonged stress positions, and deliberate starvation.

In the course of its investigation, the organisation said it interviewed 23 individuals, including 14 women who alleged prolonged detention, torture, and extortion, as well as two legal practitioners and two human rights defenders.

Stakeholders at the event called for a comprehensive investigation and the prosecution of any officers found culpable.

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