Outrage trails suspect’s public execution by ‘officers’ in Delta State

Public outrage has erupted following the emergence of a disturbing video on social media showing the cold-blooded public killing of a bound suspect in broad daylight by armed men said to be police officers in Delta State.

The 90-second video, which was posted on X on Tuesday by #Dee_9889, depicts a scene of extreme violence involving men in civilian attire operating beside a vehicle clearly labelled “Nigeria Police Force, Effurun Area Command.”

In the footage, a suspect is seen on the ground with his hands and legs tied.

In his helpless state, he is seen pleading for his life and offering to cooperate with the armed men, whom he repeatedly addressed as “officers.”

“Officers, abeg,” the man pleaded in the clip. “I’ll tell you everything. It was my friend who deceived me.”

As the suspect provided information regarding his friend’s whereabouts, shouting, “He’s at Sapele. I’ll take you to him,” one of the armed men discharged his firearm into the man’s leg.

“He’s at Sapele. I don’t know anything. “Please. I’ll take you to him. He’s at Sapele. I’ll take you to him, officer. Officer, I didn’t know,” the man wailed loudly.

As the victim continued to scream and beg, the same armed individual fired a second shot, this time towards the man’s head in full view of onlookers.

The body was subsequently carried into the waiting police van by two other men before the team drove away from the scene.

The video has triggered a wave of condemnation on social media, with Nigerians calling for the immediate arrest and prosecution of the personnel involved.

Popular activist Harrison Gwamnishu described the footage as “disturbing,” noting, “This is live execution carried out by some armed men alleged to be Police officers attached to Effurun Area Command, Delta State Command.”

Another X user, identified as Victory (#os_victry), called on the police leadership to act, writing, “This Officer is going against the law and what he did here is a crime. He should be detained and jailed… Tunji Disu, you need to sanitise the NPF.”

#the_drterry questioned the sanctity of life in the country, writing: “Is this how life has become useless to us that police will be executing suspects even in broad daylight? All the police officers there must be prosecuted.”

Following the viral spread of the video and the ensuing backlash, the Complaint Response Unit of the Nigeria Police Force confirmed via X that an investigation has been initiated into the incident.

Responding to Gwamnishu’s post, the CRU wrote, “Your complaint is hereby acknowledged, investigation initiated. Here is your Tracking number: TCRU100927.”