Two persons have been arrested in connection with the theft of over N11.7 million police salary, from the vault of a branch of the Nigeria Police Force Micro-Finance Bank, at Police College, Ikeja, Lagos.
State Police Command spokesman, Mr. Samuel Jinadu, who spoke with Vanguard, yesterday, said an Operational Manager and an Account Officer with the bank were currently being interrogated at the State Criminal Investigations Department, SCID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos.
The police spokesman, who did not give the names of the arrested bank officials, also failed to confirm if they were serving police officers or civilians working with the bank. He explained that the detectives from SCID were currently investigating the theft.
The money, said to have been paid into the bank, last Friday, was discovered missing when police officers from the state command besieged the bank for their September salary.
It was gathered that some police officers had gone to the bank last Friday to withdraw money for the independence celebration, but were asked to come back after the public holiday.
Some police officers, who had received an alert over the payment of their salaries, staged a peaceful protest behind the office of the College Commandant, calling for his removal and the arrest of all the bank staf.
It was also gathered that before the N11.7 m got missing, cases of corruption had been reported and investigated at the College.
It was said that officers, who attended promotion courses from the rank of Inspector and Assistant Superintendent of Police, were compelled to pay N7, 000 each.
The officers were said to be divided into three batches. ‘A’ batch had up to 15,000 policemen and there could be three of such batches for the promotion course, which would last only three weeks. Constables and Corporals were also compelled to pay N5, 000 each before they were allowed to take part in the promotion courses.
curled from Vanguard News