One of the most alarming allegations against Mr. Idris relate to the
unlawful sale of thirty vehicles. “Idris should be investigated on the
circumstances leading to the disappearance of about 30 vehicles which
are known to have been released to fictitious claimants,” one serving
police officer said.
Several senior and mid-level police officers have provided
SaharaReporters with a list of grave acts of corruption allegedly
committed by Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Ibrahim Idris. The
officers,
some of them retired but most still in active service, stated
that the IGP’s notoriety for embezzlement of funds, frequent abandonment
of his post, and sexual liaisons with subordinates preceded his time as
the Commissioner of Police for Kano State. The allegationsraise serious
questions about Mr. Idris’s fitness to lead the police force in the
administration of President Muhammadu Buhari with its vow to build
public trust in institutions.
One of the most alarming allegations against Mr. Idris relate to the
unlawful sale of thirty vehicles. “Idris should be investigated on the
circumstances leading to the disappearance of about 30 vehicles which
are known to have been released to fictitious claimants,” one serving
police officer said.
The illicitly sold vehicles include a Honda Accord, registration number
BP 529 KMC, sold to an Ahmed Sani Mohammed of Kano State, a Honda Civic,
registration number BH 742 NSR, to an Ibrahim Jamilu of Kano State, a
Toyota Sienna, registration number RBC 501 AM, to a Hajiya Safiya
Danlami of Kano State, a Nissan Murano, with registration number NSR 389
XV, to a Datti Abubakar of Kano State, an unregistered Honda Civic to
Garba Shehu of Kano State, and an unregistered Toyota Matrix to a Friday
Kassimu also of Kano State.
According to our police sources, other vehicles disposed of in shady
circumstances include an unregistered Mercedes Benz, a Volkswagen Golf
111, and a Toyota Lexus Jeep.The sources disclosed that the addresses
associated with the so-called buyers of the vehicles are
incomplete—often without street numbers or phone number contacts. The
incomplete addresses have made it impossible to authenticate the
identity of the buyers. “It is all part of the IG’s ploy to conceal his
wrongdoing. We urge the Presidency to order a probe into the so-called
sale of these cars. They will find that the truth is that Idris acquired
most, if not all, those vehicles for himself,” one senior police source
said.
Police sources told our correspondent that Mr. Idris was a practiced
hand at the selling of public property for private profit. They alleged
that he played a key role in the unlawful sale of police property in
Kano State outposts for personal gain during the height of the Boko
Haram crisis.
Several police sources remarked on Mr. Idris’s notoriety for sexual
relationships with his subordinates. “In total disregard of police
ethics, the IG has been cohabitating with a corporal named Amina,” one
source claimed. He added, “Amina wields a lot of influence within the
force.”
Another officer corroborated the account. “Idris has the habit of
dismissing senior officers during official hours to spend time with
Amina who even poses for photographs in his office,” said the source.
The sources told SaharaReporters that the IGP transferred Amina to Abuja
where she is now living luxuriously in a hotel and driven about in a
Frontier Jeep—all her expenses allegedly paid for by Mr. Idris despite
his meager public servant salary.
Our sources alleged that Mr. Idris’s extravagant lifestyle extends to
the United States where he has a spouse, a woman he met while on a
peacekeeping mission in Liberia. The US-based wife, Maria Idris, is of
Liberian descent, and reportedly has two children for the IGP. Our
sources said Mr. Idris has been supporting his US-based wife,
questioning how he can afford such expenses on his police salary.
“The IG’s maintenance of a family in faraway America is repeatedly
discussed by fellow officers. We wonder howhas been able to pay for the
expenses of his second family in the US,” one source told
SaharaReporters.
Other police sources said they were dismayed that President Buhari chose
a man as IGP who lacks operational expertise and courage. One officer
alleged that, as the Commissioner of Police in Kano, Mr. Idris locked
himself inside a toilet for hours during an attack by Islamist
insurgents belonging to Boko Haram in Kano. “During a Boko Haram raid in
2012, the then Commissioner of Police [Mr. Idris] locked himself in the
toilet for hours at the State Police Command Headquarters,” said the
source. He added that Mr. Idris’s hiding allowed Boko Haram fighters to
move through Kano unimpeded, killing men, women and children as well as
police officers.
Several officers contrasted Mr. Idris’s cowardice with the bravery
displayed in Borno State by the Commissioner of Police, Simeon Midenda.
They said Mr. Midenda joined some agents of the Department of State
Security (DSS) in a fierce battle with Boko Haram insurgents. They added
that Mr. Midenda’s efforts led to the killing of numerous Boko Haram
insurgents.
Our police sources also accused Mr. Idris of Unclad nepotism in making
top appointments. They said the IGP’s questionable appointments included
that of CSP Kolo to head the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). Our
sources said Mr. Kolo had been accused of raping a woman. They added
that Mr. Kolo was never seriously investigated for the alleged rape,
adding, “We demand that the then AIG in charge, Alhaji Tambari Yabobe,
be mandated to produce the case file and to explain why the matter was
swept under the carpet.”
Our sources, including a member of a watchdog group, also accused Mr.
Idris of leading a crop of officers who carried out extrajudicial
killings in Kano State during a period of assaults by Islamist
terrorists.
SaharaReporters repeatedly reached out to Mr. Idris for comment on these
allegations. However, he declined to take our calls and did not respond
to text messages. SaharaReporters spoke to one of Mr. Idris’s deputies
who said the IG was in a meeting and would return our call afterwards.
Mr. Idris never rang back.
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