The Rivers State Police Command has denied a social media report alleging that the Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Adepoju, grabbed or facilitated the grabbing of land belonging to residents of Victory Estate, Rumuosi Community, in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the state.
In a statement, the Command described the allegation as false and misleading, saying the circumstances surrounding the matter were different from what was portrayed in the video.
According to the Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Agabe Blessing Kaborlo, the Commissioner received an application on March 6, 2025, from O. S. Obior, on behalf of a company, requesting police protection for a court bailiff to execute a judgment in a suit involving Colonel Ogwumerum Eke and another against Chief Friday Ibeabuchi Anya and another.
The statement said the application was referred to the Department of Operations and subsequently to the Police Legal Section for verification.
It added that the Customary Court, Choba, confirmed on March 21, 2025, that the judgment was valid and that there was no pending appeal or stay of execution.
Based on the legal advice received, the Command said police personnel were deployed on April 7 and 8, 2025, solely to provide security for the court bailiff.
The Command stressed that the officers were expressly directed not to participate physically in the execution of the judgment.
However, during the execution, residents of Victory Estate, Rumuosi, reportedly objected, maintaining that while they did not dispute the validity of the judgment, the judgment concerned land in Rumuagholu Community and did not cover their property in Victory Estate, Rumuosi.
The Command said the Commissioner of Police immediately halted the execution and directed the Police Legal Section to investigate the conflicting claims.
It said all relevant parties were invited to present their positions, while the disputed location was visited and photographs of damaged properties were obtained.
As part of the investigation, the police obtained the Certified True Copy of the judgment and the disputed survey/site plan from the Customary Court, Choba, and forwarded the documents to the Surveyor-General of Rivers State for charting and geo-location.
The Surveyor-General subsequently confirmed that the area covered by the survey and site plan was within Rumuagholu Community and did not extend to Victory Estate, Rumuosi Community.
The Police Command therefore said Commissioner Olugbenga Adepoju neither grabbed, acquired nor took possession of any land belonging to residents of Victory Estate, Rumuosi.
It maintained that the Commissioner’s involvement was limited to providing police protection for a court bailiff after the judgment had been duly verified.
The Command also reiterated that police officers in Rivers State have been warned against guarding, enforcing or executing land-related matters without proper authorisation and legal backing, stressing that land disputes are civil matters that should be resolved through the courts.
The Command urged members of the public to report any police officer found engaging in unauthorised land-related activities to the nearest police station or the Complaint Response Unit.
