Operatives of the Anambra State security outfit, Agunechemba, have come under heavy criticism following the circulation of a video showing a tricycle (keke) rider allegedly being brutalized in Awka.
The video, which surfaced on social media, was shared by a Facebook user identified as Amaka Nwada Ebenebe. She claimed the incident occurred at Y Junction in Okpuno after the rider allegedly refused to give the operatives N200 as a bribe.
In the video, the rider is seen being assaulted while bystanders gathered at the scene.
Amaka, who said she witnessed the incident firsthand, condemned the alleged action of the operatives and expressed concern over what she described as harassment of citizens by security personnel.
She said: “Because this boy did not give them 200 naira that’s why they are beating him like this.
“This is a country where security is now hurting the masses because of peanuts. So bad, my eye saw hell today. It is a pity we had to find ourselves in this kind of situation. May God help us.”
Amaka also stated that she was present during the incident and was captured in the video pleading with the operatives to forgive the rider.
The incident has reignited concerns about the conduct of Agunechemba operatives. The security outfit had previously faced criticism last year after allegations that its members brutalized a female National Youth Service Corps member and reportedly stripped her naked while claiming they were searching for internet fraudsters at a corpers’ lodge.
However, reacting to the latest video, the spokesperson for the agency, Mr. Nweke Nweke, dismissed the claims, stating that the footage was old and had been reposted to create mischief.
He said: “That is an old video. We have even reacted to it before. I remember making a press release about it then, and those men you see in the video were sanctioned then.”
Despite the denial, checks by GlamJam indicate that the video was posted on Sunday morning by Amaka, who maintained that she personally witnessed the incident.