Youths protest in Delta over arrest of nine residents by police

Some youths in Ughelli town, Delta state, on Wednesday staged a protest over what they described as police brutality.

The protesters carried placards with the inscriptions such as “Police brutality is getting too much in our land”, “We are tired of police”, among others.

The protesters complained that some youths in the town were arrested on Tuesday by operatives of Delta police command over allegation of internet fraud.

They also accused police officers of extortion over alleged internet fraud.

However, speaking on the protest, Bright Edafe, Delta state police spokesperson, confirmed the arrest of nine persons on Tuesday.

He said police officers from the Ughelli area command on Tuesday intercepted an unregistered Benz GLK car without number plates.

Edafe said the officers confronted the four occupants of the car to establish the ownership of the vehicle, noting that they could not provide useful answers.

“In an attempt to arrest them, some of the youths attacked the Police, destroyed their vehicle, and broke the head of one of the officers,” he said.

“Nine of the suspects were arrested and will be charged to court. Youths are advised to stay off any protest because it won’t deter us from doing our job.”