The National Human Rights Commission has levelled grave allegations against the Anti Kidnapping Unit of the Imo State Police Command, also known as the Tiger Base, saying a detainee, Magnus Ejiogu, was murdered in custody and that officers engaged in a systematic coverup of his death.
In an urgent petition to the Deputy Inspector-General of Police for the Criminal Investigation Department, the Commission detailed a series of alleged violations and acts of insubordination within the Imo Police Command.
The case began when the NHRC, acting on a petition from Ejiogu’s wife, alerted the Inspector-General of Police in September 2025, calling for the case file to be transferred to Abuja to ensure an unbiased investigation.
According to the document, this order was approved by the IGP but was subsequently refused by ACP Oladimeji Adeyewiwa, who allegedly boasted that “the governor is interested in the case.” This refusal occurred despite a visit from a team from police headquarters and a recommendation from the Commissioner of Police, Aboki Danjuma, to comply. The timeline of events presented by the NHRC suggests a concerted effort to conceal Ejiogu’s fate.
The Anti-Kidnapping Unit publicly accused Ejiogu and others of sponsoring militant groups and then charged them to court on October 30th. However, Ejiogu was notably absent from the proceedings, with the prosecution claiming he was sick. The truth emerged the following day when Ejiogu’s wife, visiting the command with a lawyer, was finally informed that her husband had died in detention and his body was already in a mortuary.
A critical piece of evidence cited by the Commission indicates that Ejiogu’s body was deposited at the mortuary on October 23rd, meaning he was charged in court posthumously. The Human Rights Commission has condemned the unit’s actions, stating they failed to observe the Admin istration of Criminal Justice Act by denying Ejiogu his right to legal representation.
The Commission further accuses the unit of violating his constitutional right against inhuman treatment, breaching international conventions against torture, and ultimately violating his fundamental right to life. Citing a complete lack of confidence in the Imo State Police Command’s internal investigation, the NHRC is urgently calling for the DIG to take over the case file.
The Commission demands the arrest and prosecution of the officers involved in the “custodian violence” and calls for the DIG’s direct supervision of the murder investigation, which it argues was tragically foreseeable given the prior warnings it had issued
