Police investigate VeryDarkMan for wearing police uniform

The Nigeria Police Force has launched an investigation into a viral video featuring social media influencer Martins ‘VeryDarkMan’. In the video, he is seen wearing the police uniform.

In the video posted on his Instagram page on Saturday, VeryDarkMan donned a police uniform and referred to himself as the Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) of an ‘online division.’

He said Nigerians should not describe him as an activist, saying his dedication is to cleaning up the social media space, fighting against injustice, and holding online vendors accountable.

VeryDarkMan expressed commitment to using his unorthodox approach to fight injustice, dishonesty and shady business practices.

He commended the police for their fight against corruption and urged Nigerians to join the continuous battle to rid the nation of corruption.

He said: “My name is CSP VeryDarkMan of the online division, the Nigeria number online police. I’m not an activist; stop calling me an activist because, like every other one out there, I’m dedicated to sanitising the social media space by using my platform to stand against people who abuse power, oppressors and especially my favourite customers, the online vendors that collected money from customers and will not deliver the goods or whatever things that are agreed upon.

“I stand against them one hundred per cent, therefore standing for the victims and collecting their money back and stand against general oppression in the society. This work is not easy, and many people complain about my approach and how I do it, saying I’m rude and disrespectful. Still, you can’t fight for Nigeria with respect, which is why I’m disrespectful. I’ll not change, and I’ll disrespect a lot of bad eggs in society.”

Different patterns

The VeryDarkMan also explained how he goes about his tasks.

“Unlike regular police, we have in society that goes through a lot of procedures and protocols, but I’ll not do that because immediately any evidence against them (the rotten eggs) is brought to me, I’ll stand up and spoil their names because I love spoiling people and I don’t care their position in the society, so far there’s evidence against them. So it’s better to be good and not fall into my trap.

“So how do I do this work? When evidence is brought to me, I’ll post it online, write a petition with my money, and take it to the police; I believe the police are a body dedicated to fighting corruption, which is why they’re doing them offline. I’ll be doing my own online because I have the platform,” he said.

He described himself as a patriotic Nigerian who refuses to let injustice, corruption, and other societal ills prevail in the country.

“To the people who said VeryDarkMan sold his integrity, he is now coming online to talk about social uprightness, and because I sell my own, it doesn’t mean the next generation will sell theirs. To those people saying they’ll set me up if they come for me, they’re the victim, and if I come for them, they’re the victims.”

Unauthorised portrayal

In response to the viral video, the police condemned VeryDarkMan’s unauthorised use of its uniforms and accoutrements.

The police, in a statement posted on their social media handles, announced that they would investigate to determine the source of the police gear used and the authority under which VeryDarkMan acted.

“The force unequivocally disassociates itself from this unauthorised portrayal and has launched a full investigation to determine the source of the Police gear used and the authority under which he acted.

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“It is essential to remind the public that the unauthorised use of Police uniforms, insignia, or accoutrements constitutes a criminal offence, as stipulated in Section 251 of the Criminal Code Law and Section 133 of the Penal Code Law, and is subject to strict penalties.

“While the Nigeria Police Force recognises and supports the creativity of young Nigerians in the content creation space, we strongly caution against the misuse of Police uniforms or symbols. Unauthorised use of these items undermines the values and integrity of the Force and will not be tolerated.”