Nnewi traders celebrate release of 33 counterparts tagged IPOB members

Traders in Nnewi, Anambra State, on Monday, celebrated the release of
their members who were arrested and detained as part of members of the
Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) who allegedly killed a police
inspector during a protest.

The traders converged on Agboedo motor spare parts market to offer
praises to God in appreciation of the release of their members.

Speaking during the event, Chairman of Agboedo Motor Spare Parts
Dealers Association (AMSPDA), Chief Gabriel Chibueze, said the
gathering was essentially to appreciate God for the unconditional
release of their members.

He said the traders were arrested from the eight major markets in the
industrial city, expressing worry over the eight days they spent in
police custody, regardless of their innocence.

The AMSPDA chairman said the detained members could have spent longer
time in the hands of the police if not for the relentless efforts of
members of his executive and other relevant stakeholders.

He said, "Ever since their detention, the entire executive have not
rested on its oars in fighting for their release.

"We wrote letters to all authorities concerned, including the IGP, the
commissioner for Trade and Commerce, our representatives in Abuja,
among others.

"We also had to shut the entire markets in the town for three
consecutive days in solidarity with our detained members."

Meanwhile, a group, International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule
of Law (Intersociety) has protested alleged extortion of some of the
detained suspects, while calling for the refund of their monies, and
an apology by the state police command.

A press statement signed by the group's BoT chairman, Emeka
Umeagbalasi, accused the police of illegally extorting from some of
the traders before their release.

He said beyond the 33 traders paraded as IPOB members, 10 others were
kept separately and fleeced of N1.2million.

The release reads, "All the 43 innocent traders trading at Nkwo Nnewi
Markets including members of the Nnewi Motor Spare Parts Dealers
Association in Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State,
arrested and detained on phantom allegations of "terrorism", "arson"
and "murder" leveled against them by the Anambra State Police Command
have been released.

"While 33 of them were criminally paraded on Sunday, 25th November
2018; 10 others were detained but excluded from the list of those
criminally paraded. One of them, Abubakar Mohammed, arrested alongside
the innocent Igbo traders was deliberately removed from the list of
those criminally paraded on account of his ethno-religious identity.

"The 33 paraded traders were released relatively unconditionally,
while four out of the remaining reportedly lost N1.2m (N300, 000 each)
to a police extortion racketeer operating within the State Police
Command using an unnamed legal practitioner as a front or points-man.

"It is possible that the ten persons were excluded from the list of
those paraded because of their acceptance under duress to pay huge
sums as criminal bail fees.

"The affected traders were said to have been threatened by the police
extortion racketeer to deny offering such criminal bail fees, said to
have been handed over to the police lawyer front."

The group welcomed the release of the 43 traders but demanded for a
thorough investigation into the allegation of loss of N1.2m and
recovery of same if proven to have been extorted.

It said, "The Anambra State Police Command must also disclose publicly
the full identities of the police Inspector said to have been killed
and others allegedly injured and hospitalized."