The Nigeria Police Force has summoned controversial social media commentator Martins Vincent Otse, better known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), to provide evidence supporting his claims that police officers stationed at highway checkpoints are colluding with kidnappers to abduct wealthy travellers.
The invitation comes less than 48 hours after VDM made the allegation while speaking as a panellist at the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt.
His remarks, which quickly went viral across social media platforms, accused officers of profiling travellers based on their appearance and vehicle type, then tipping off criminal syndicates for a cut of ransom proceeds.
In an official statement released Thursday morning, Force Public Relations Officer CSP Ani Iniedu described the allegations as “unsubstantiated and unfairly damaging” to an institution entrusted with the safety of over 200 million Nigerians.
“Allegations of this gravity demand a corresponding standard of evidence, and that standard has not yet been met,” the statement read in part.
The Force strongly pushed back against the narrative, pointing out that police personnel are not only deployed to prevent crime but are themselves primary targets of the very criminals they are accused of aiding.
The statement noted that officers have been ambushed and killed in recent months, while police stations and operational vehicles have come under repeated attacks by bandits and terrorists across the country.
The police leadership also took issue with what it termed “blanket accusations” against the entire institution, arguing that the overwhelming majority of officers report to duty daily under dangerously underfunded and life-threatening conditions.
“Sweeping public accusations that paint the entire Force as complicit in the crimes it exists to prevent are deeply demoralizing to these officers and unfair to the majority who serve with integrity,” Iniedu stated.
The Force, however, left the door open for accountability, assuring that any officer found culpable of misconduct would face disciplinary action and criminal prosecution.
But it insisted that isolated cases of wrongdoing should not be used to condemn an entire organisation of hundreds of thousands of personnel.
The police have now given VDM a clear directive: produce evidence to back his claims or face the consequences of making false allegations against a state institution.
The Force specifically asked for any proof that officers at checkpoints identify wealthy individuals and subsequently transmit their information to kidnappers for the purpose of facilitating abduction.
“Any such information will be treated with urgency and investigated thoroughly,” the police assured, while also inviting members of the public with credible evidence of misconduct to come forward through official channels rather than resorting to public accusations alone.
In its concluding remarks, the Nigeria Police Force struck a cautious tone, acknowledging that legitimate criticism strengthens accountability but warning that unverified allegations can erode public trust and compromise national security.
The Force called on citizens to exercise responsibility in making and sharing claims concerning security institutions, emphasising that the integrity of the institution cannot be “casually diminished by unverified allegations.”
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