Dismissed Edo Police Officer Threatens Suicide Over Alleged Injustice

A dismissed police officer in Edo State, Inspector Edith Uduma, has threatened to take her own life and that of her children following her dismissal from the force.

Uduma claims she was unjustly dismissed after exposing an alleged rape incident involving a fellow officer.

Speaking out, Uduma accused the Edo State Police Command of denying her the opportunity to share her side of the story.

Her dismissal came after a viral video she recorded in October showed Sergeant Abraham, a fellow officer, in a compromising situation with a 17-year-old girl inside the South Ibie police station.

The footage captured Abraham hurriedly pulling up his trousers as Uduma confronted him, while the teenage girl was seen lying on a chair.

Following an orderly room trial, both Uduma and Abraham were dismissed from the police force.

However, the Edo State Police Command alleged that Uduma and her husband, Inspector Ibrahim Mohammed, had conspired to extort ₦1 million from Abraham to cover up the incident. The police claimed that when Abraham offered only ₦45,000, the video was leaked online.

Uduma, however, denied the allegations of extortion, insisting that she recorded the video to expose the misconduct. She called on the authorities to revisit her case, emphasizing that her actions were aimed at ensuring justice for the teenage girl.

The command said, “That, contrary to reports from certain quarters, the said female police officer, AP/no 228719 Insp. Edith Uduma, was the Charge Room Officer on October 7, 2024, the night F/No. 504694 Sgt Abraham allegedly raped a female suspect in the station.

“The female officer, instead of reporting the incident to the Divisional Police Officer or the Incident Duty Officer as the case may be, for disciplinary actions to be initiated against the erring officer, took advantage of the situation to enrich herself by calling her husband, AP No. 228652 Insp. Ibrahim Mohammed, whom she conspired with to unlawfully demand the sum of N1m from the sergeant to assist him in concealing the matter.

“Following these events, an orderly room trial was initiated against all the officers, which led to the dismissal of Sgt. Abraham and Insp Edith Uduma.”

Uduma’s husband was also demoted to the rank of Sergeant.

However, Uduma denied the allegations in an interview with Punch on Saturday, insisting she never extorted money and that she was not given a fair hearing. She alleged that her dismissal was orchestrated because she lacked influential connections.

Uduma who threatened to kill herself if she didn’t get justice said, “What the Edo Command is saying is not what happened. They know I have no rank or support to fight back.”

She further revealed that the Force Headquarters in Abuja was still investigating the matter only for the Edo command to dismiss her hurriedly.

“I want justice. My dismissal is unjust,” she said tearfully.

She said her husband, who was also sanctioned, had no connection to the matter.

“He (my husband) used to bring something for me to eat. He brought food that time to the station.

“If Nigerians refuse to listen to me – because my husband has been in detention, and they have been looking for me to arrest me, to charge me to court – if Nigeria refuses to listen to me, I will just poison all my children and myself. I will die. Because I’m just stranded like this,” she said, noting she had been in hiding and had not seen her children in a long time due to the incident.

She alleged that the DPO at the station prompted her to ask Sergeant Ibrahim for the ₦1m for negotiation when the sergeant reportedly disappeared after the incident, noting that this was to lure the suspect to show up.

According to her, she is surprised how the DPO and other officers allegedly turned the matter against her.

She said, “If the police force can do this to a police officer, how much more to the innocent and civilians?”