South-East stakeholders, including traditional rulers, human rights activists, lawyers and representatives of civil society and non-governmental organisations, were moved to tears on Wednesday as Amnesty International and alleged victims recounted cases of torture, rape and prolonged detention without trial at the Anti-Kidnapping Unit, popularly known as Tiger Base, of the Nigeria Police Force in Owerri, Imo State.

The unit, which operates under the Imo State Police Command, was alleged to have acted with impunity and outside established rules of engagement.

At the public presentation of an investigative report on the unit in Enugu, stakeholders demanded a thorough probe and prosecution of any officers found culpable.

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

According to the report, the unit was responsible for prolonged arbitrary detention, extortion, excessive bail demands, enforced disappearances and the removal of children from their mothers without documentation.

“Tiger Base has become synonymous with police operating outside the law and abusing their power to enrich themselves through extortion. Those arrested and detained by this unit are subjected to torture and ill-treatment; they never come out intact. Many are traumatised forever. Despite the horrific violations they have suffered, there has been no accountability to date,” the report stated.

It alleged that many detainees were neither allowed to make formal statements nor brought before a court, enabling indefinite detention. Some were reportedly held for weeks or months without charge, while others were said to have been killed.

Amnesty said detainees were subjected to hanging, beatings, waterboarding, prolonged stress positions and deliberate starvation.

The organisation said it interviewed 23 people, including 14 women who alleged prolonged detention, torture and extortion, as well as two lawyers and two human rights defenders.

Sanusi said Amnesty wrote to the police on December 1 to share its findings and request a response. On February 6, the police acknowledged the allegations and stated that the Inspector General of Police had ordered a comprehensive audit of the unit, with the outcome to be communicated upon completion.

Some survivors narrated their experiences at the event. One said he saw officers take a detainee from a cell, after which gunshots were heard. The detainee was later returned with bullet wounds.

“The other guy took him out; we heard gunshots. We thought they had killed him, but after some hours he came back with bullet wounds. Nobody cared,” he said.

Another former detainee alleged he was arrested over claims of purchasing stolen items, detained for weeks and pressured to secure his release through payment.

Others alleged that suspects were forced to sign incriminating statements under torture, including beatings with iron rods, cables and batons. Some detainees were reportedly tied, suspended and cut with sharp objects.

“If you survive Cell 1, it is only by God’s grace. Many people disappeared after being moved there; nobody ever saw them again,” a former detainee said.

Amnesty also alleged the existence of an illegal point-of-sale operation within the facility, where families withdrew cash to secure the release of detained relatives.

It said each of the unit’s four cells, measuring about 12 by 12 feet, reportedly held more than 70 detainees at a time. The cells were said to have no windows and a single toilet each, often overflowing, forcing detainees to eat and sleep in unsanitary conditions.

The report cited the cases of Okechukwu Ogbedagu, who allegedly died in custody in 2022 from asphyxiation, and Japhet Njoku, a security guard accused of theft, who reportedly died in detention on May 5, 2025.

Amnesty said the alleged abuses reflected broader failures to address torture, extrajudicial killings and corruption within law enforcement.

“It appears the police have not learnt any lessons from the #EndSARS protests. Instead of being held accountable, corrupt police officers have been emboldened by the impunity they enjoy,” Sanusi said.

The organisation urged the authorities to establish an independent and impartial investigation into the allegations and ensure accountability. It also stressed that officers must comply with Section 62 of the Police Act, which requires suspects arrested for non-capital offences to be released within 24 hours, with or without surety.

Stakeholders at the event called on the police authorities to shut down the unit and compensate victims, as well as retrain officers to ensure compliance with established rules of engagement. (The Guardian)

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