Police, military extorted ₦21.8bn at South-east roadblocks in two months – Intersociety
The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) has accused police and military personnel of extorting a staggering ₦21.8 billion from roadblocks in the South-East geopolitical zone within two months.
According to a statement by the Chairman of Intersociety, Comrade Emeka Umeagbalasi, the police allegedly pocketed ₦15 billion, while the military netted ₦6.8 billion between December 2024 and January 2025.
Umeagbalasi described the Uga Junction and Atani Road Naval checkpoints in Onitsha, Anambra State, as the “most lucrative,” allegedly yielding over ₦600 million from extortion at gunpoint.
Umeagbalasi stated, “The deployed personnel of the Nigerian Armed Forces and the Nigeria Police Force in the South-East seized no less than ₦21.8 billion from civilians during the Christmas and New Year periods, under gunpoint extortion and related practices.”
The findings revealed at least 300 direct military roadblocks and 500 patrol teams in the region, with 98% involved in extortion. Each military roadblock reportedly collected an average of ₦100,000 daily, translating to ₦80 million daily or ₦2.4 billion monthly.
Police personnel manning about 2,500 roadblocks in the region allegedly raked in an average of ₦10.5 billion over two months, alongside ₦3.5 billion from barracks extortions and an additional ₦1 billion from other forms of corruption.
State-by-State Breakdown of Police Extortion
Imo State: ₦2.94 billion
Anambra State: ₦2.52 billion
Abia State: ₦2.1 billion
Enugu State: ₦1.68 billion
Ebonyi State: ₦1.26 billion
Umeagbalasi highlighted that the acts contravened Section 108 of the Armed Forces Act, which prescribes a 14-year jail term for military personnel involved in extortion, and Section 99 of the Criminal Code Act, which criminalizes police roadblock extortion with penalties of up to seven years in prison.
He urged the government to take immediate steps to curb these corrupt practices, enforce existing laws, and hold perpetrators accountable.