Cross River Community Tasks Police Over Arbitrary Arrest, Detention Of 25 Youths

The 25 community youths who have been detained for more than a month have been ordered released by the Traditional Rulers Council of Old Netim Community in Akamkpa LGA.

Following the recent arson of Late Martina Okey Itagbor by some local kids, the community has been in the news.

Young people in Old Netim burned to death Martina Okey Itagbor, a mother of four, after accusing her of witchcraft.

The anonymous attackers, who documented their act in a widely shared video, charged the woman with employing witchcraft to start a car accident that killed two young people.

Prior to her murder, some individuals in the neighbourhood had suspected Late Martina Itagbor of inflicting disease on a certain young person.

Senator Prince Bassey Edet Otu, the state’s governor, denounced the death of Martina Okey in the wake of the arson and directed the state’s police to pursue the offenders.

The community’s traditional rulers, however, have not been pleased with the police authorities’ actions.

The village’s traditional leaders charged that the police were turning it into a ghost town and targeting adolescents arbitrarily.

They claimed that the Police had engaged in “indiscriminate arrest of youths in the community” in a statement issued by the Traditional Council of the Old-Netim Community, which was jointly signed by the Council Chairman and Clan Head, H.R.H. Ntufam Augustin Nyong Orok, and the Secretary, Ntufam Linus Pius Mbey.

The community’s kids as a whole did not commit the murder, the elders asserted.

They utterly denounced the murderous crime, stating that “the segment of teenagers who were opposed to the development of the community did the act so as to give the community a terrible image.

The elders declared, “We used this medium to appeal to the Assistant Inspector General of Police Zone 6 Calabar and the State Commissioner of Police in Cross River command to release the youths in their custody and go after the genuine perpetrators of the incident who are currently at large.”

The community will continue to work with the Cross River State government to uphold peace, which is the cornerstone of development, the royal fathers said, claiming that innocent families are suffering as a result of the tragedy and the circumstances.

They pointed out that the Old Netim village, which serves as the commercial centre of Akamkpa LGA, Cross River state, was formerly regarded as a tranquil area suitable for economic growth, but has now been reduced to a ghost of its former self.

Additionally, they vowed their unwavering allegiance and support for the state government, led by Governor Bassey Otu.

As at the time of publication, the state’s police authorities had not responded to queries.

The State Police Commissioner, however, “would be visiting Akamkpa Area Command Headquarters, Old Netim today (Wednesday, August 16, 2023) on a familiarisation trip, the problem will undoubtedly be highlighted,” a force officer claimed.