A dismissed police officer in Edo State, Inspector Edith Uduma, has called for justice following her removal from the force after exposing an alleged rape involving a colleague.
Uduma, who served at a police station in South Ibie, claimed her dismissal was orchestrated unfairly and has threatened to take her own life and that of her children if her demands for justice are ignored.
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In October, Uduma recorded a video showing Sergeant Abraham in a compromising position with a 17-year-old girl at the station. The footage, which went viral, depicted the officer hastily dressing while the girl lay on a chair. Both officers were later dismissed after an orderly room trial, with the police accusing Uduma and her husband, Inspector Ibrahim Mohammed, of attempting to extort N1 million from Abraham to cover up the incident.
The Edo State Police Command, in a statement by its spokesperson Moses Yamu, said, “The female officer, instead of reporting the incident to the Divisional Police Officer, conspired with her husband to unlawfully demand N1 million from the sergeant to assist him in concealing the matter.”
Uduma denied the allegations in an interview, insisting she never extorted money and was not given a fair hearing. She claimed her dismissal was due to a lack of influential connections. Tearfully calling for public intervention, she said, “If Nigerians refuse to listen to me, I will just poison all my children and myself. I will die.”
She accused the Divisional Police Officer at the time, SP Lilian Osemwegie, of instructing her to request the money to lure the suspect back to the station after he fled. According to Uduma, the situation was later turned against her by the DPO and other officers.
Her husband, Mohammed, who was demoted to Sergeant and detained, was also accused of involvement in the alleged extortion, a claim Uduma refuted. “He only brought me food at the station. He had no connection to the case,” she explained.
A human rights group, Take It Back Movement, has petitioned the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, calling for a review of Uduma’s dismissal and her husband’s demotion.
In a statement, the group’s Abuja branch coordinator, Robert Ande, described the actions against Uduma as “gross injustice.”
The petition read, “Instead of commending her actions, she was dismissed, and her husband was detained. The actions of the Edo Police Command risk hindering investigations and shielding the perpetrator of the rape.”
Meanwhile, efforts to reach the Edo police spokesperson, Moses Yamu, and the retired DPO, SP Lilian Osemwegie, have so far been unsuccessful.
Uduma lamented, “If the police force can do this to a police officer, how much more to innocent civilians?” She appealed to Nigerians and relevant authorities to investigate the matter and ensure justice is served.
