A video making the rounds on social media has stirred outrage after it captured a Police Officer along the Benin Bypass allegedly extorting travelers over the Electronic Central Motor Registry (ECMR), a system recently suspended by the Inspector-General of Police.
In the footage, the Police Officer was heard asking the travelers to either pay ₦5,000 or provide five litres of fuel to be allowed to proceed with their journey, despite the ECMR not being required.
The incident has since created widespread condemnation online, with many Nigerians expressing frustration over continued cases of Police misconduct despite ongoing reforms.
A moment between a police officer and travelers who didn’t have the ECMR — which the IGP has already suspended. The officer asked them to either pay ₦5,000 or buy 5 litres of fuel, along the Benin Bypass pic.twitter.com/Yt66duhk4f
— TENIOLA (@Teeniiola) May 25, 2025
Reacting swiftly to the viral clip, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, Bright Edafe, took to his official X (formerly Twitter) account to denounce the Officer’s behavior.
He wrote:
“All these Policemen bringing shame to us, one by one, they will be sent out of the organization. Maybe when they become jobless, they will go into content creation. This is embarrassing and the Force is on it.”
All these Policemen bringing shame to us, one by one, they will be sent out of the organisation. Maybe when they become jobless, they will go into content creation. This is embarrassing and the Force is on it https://t.co/Iw6t5nmdr0
— SP. Bright Edafe (@Brightgoldenboy) May 26, 2025
Edafe’s statement suggests that disciplinary action is underway as the Nigeria Police Force continues efforts to sanitize its ranks and restore public trust.
As of the time of this report, the identity of the Officer involved has not been disclosed, but pressure is mounting on the authorities to take immediate action and make an example of him to deter future misconduct.