By Phil Okose Onitsha
Six wrongly labeled members of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Easern Security Network, ESN, have been released by the Imo state police command.
The chairman of a Civil Society Organisation, CSO, International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law, Intersociety, Nze Emeka Umeagbalasi, made this disclsure to newsmen in Onitsha weekend.
“Five of the six regained their freedom late night of yesterday, 3rd June 2021 from Imo State CID
Headquarters and Owerri Correctional Headquarters or Prisons.”
The five newly freed innocent citizens included, Smith Amadikwa, Casmir Ugbor, Ojukwu Ukonu, Emeka Mbonu and Engineer Ikechukwu Okomah.
According to him, “they were wrongly arrested on 12th, 13th, 14th, 13th and 19th May 2021, respectively; and publicly paraded on 28th May
2021 and falsely labeled “ESN hoodlums that attacked Imo State Correctional/Prisons Headquarters and others”.
“Intersociety had spoken to the five newly freed innocent citizens this morning and they all expressed joy and gratitude to our efforts and those of others including the media; and expressed sadness over the rate of extrajudicial killings and torture going on at the State CID, Owerri where they have been held since 12th, 13th, 14th and 19th of May 2021.”
“This is to the extent that scores of citizens arrested non violently and taken into custody at the
State CID have been shot and killed or tortured to death-with their bodies permanently disappeared to avoid traces.”
Similarly, Citizen Casmir Ibegbulem, one of the five wrongly arrested and falsely labeled innocent citizens, differently arrested on 25th May 2021 in Owerri and paraded as “ESN hoodlums that attempted to burn down Orji Police Station, was released on Tuesday, 1st June 2021..
“Citizen Casmir Ibegbulem (an oil company staff in Bayelsa State), alongside Citizens Chinonso John (an Owerri based barber), Chukwudi Okoro (Orji-Owerri based Shuttle Bus owner/transporter), Chigaemezu Sebastian (Owerri Timber Market
trader/plumber) and Daberechi Alozie (25 years old apprentice Aluminum Fabricator with Oceanic Aluminum, Owerri) were arrested on 25th May
2021 at Orji part of Owerri and later paraded.”
“Two days later, on 27th May 2021, they were taken to Force Headquarters, Abuja, from where Citizen Ibegbulem was forced to ‘buy his freedom’ with whopping N1.5m after five days of detention.”
Citizen Casmir Ibegbulem said that on his release he did an audio voice message of gratitude and revelation of what he went through and saw at the State CID, Owerri and Force Headquarters, Abuja.
