The Inspector-General of Police, Tunde Disu, has warned Nigerians against resorting to jungle justice, stressing that anyone who assaults or kills a suspected criminal through mob action will face prosecution for murder.
Disu issued the warning in a viral video, where he maintained that mob attacks could no longer be justified as community action. He said individuals involved in such acts could face the death penalty if convicted of murder under Nigerian law.
The IGP said, “Anybody who assaults or summarily executes a suspected criminal in the name of mob action is guilty of murder. And the punishment for murder is death.”
He further warned that people who incite, organise or participate in mob attacks, as well as those who record and circulate videos of such incidents or obstruct police intervention, could face charges of conspiracy to commit murder, an offence that carries a prison sentence of up to 14 years.
According to Disu, he has directed Commissioners of Police across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to treat every reported case of mob action as homicide and conduct comprehensive investigations using available forensic and intelligence resources.
“We are not going to spare anybody who is involved in mob action. We will do a thorough investigation, and we will take them to court,” he said.
The directive comes amid renewed concerns over extrajudicial killings in the country. One recent case involved 25-year-old Ibrahim Mbaya, a University of Jos graduate who was allegedly beaten to death after being accused of stealing an iPhone 12.
The Nigeria Police Force urged members of the public to hand suspected criminals over to law enforcement authorities rather than taking the law into their own hands.
The police stressed that allegations of criminality should be properly investigated and determined through due process rather than violence or mob action.
BACKSTORY:
The warning comes amid growing concerns over the rising cases of jungle justice and extrajudicial killings in Nigeria, where suspected criminals are sometimes assaulted or killed by angry mobs before the police can intervene.
The issue has continued to attract public attention following recent incidents involving the alleged killing of suspects accused of theft and other offences. The latest directive by Inspector-General of Police Tunde Disu signals a tougher approach by the police, with Commissioners of Police across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory instructed to treat cases of mob action as homicide and conduct full investigations.
The police have repeatedly urged Nigerians to hand suspected criminals over to law enforcement agencies rather than taking the law into their own hands, stressing that allegations of criminality must be determined through due process.
