By Mary BASSEY, Senior Investigator Correspondent Lagos/
SP gbadegeshin Toyin DPO Bariga and his two embattled Inspectors…
LAGOS-A rather bizarre scenario is currently playing out at the Lagos State Police Command over the dismissal of two police Inspectors suspected to be dating each other. But the officers have been given 7 clear working days to appeal their dismissal. The affected officers are Inspectors Adedoyin Damilola with AP/NO 289317 and Makanjuola Modupe with AP/NO 234465 who served at the Bariga Division prior to their ordeal.
The woman Inspector, Modupe Makanjuola was accused by the Divisional Police Officers DPO, SP Joshua T. Gbadegeshin of sleeping with his colleague, Inspector Damilola Adeoye even as he has the intention of going out with her; an accusation the woman inspector denied. However, it was gathered that the distraught DPO who pointedly told the Woman Inspector that he hadn’t asked any woman out in his life without success, vowed to see to the exit of her and her male Inspector friend out of the police force. Afraid that the DPO might make good his threat to dismiss them, they jointly wrote a petition to the Commissioner of Police Lagos State Police Command dated August 21,2023 accusing the DPO of threat to life, conduct likely to cause breach of peace and unprofessional act unbecoming of a senior police officer.
In the petition, the woman Inspector claimed with evidence of attached WhatsApp amorous messages to her from the DPO which she turned down; including giving out official arms and police camouflage to civilian relatives to go on operation against police Act. In the meantime, the DPO had written a strong worded petition to the Commissioner of Police citing ‘derelictionof duty, gross insubordination and disobedience to lawful order against the two inspectors; an action which resulted to orderly room trial.
“But the Provost Marshall then called us and advised us to write a letter of withdrawal to the petition against the DPO on the ground that he is our senior and that the matter will be amicably settled which we did on January 5, 2024, not knowing that it was a ploy to nail us. We later got to know that both our DPO and the Provost were coursemates.”
Continuing, Woman Inspector Modupe added, “Before the coming of Gbadegeshin Joshua as DPO Bariga, I had served three other DPOs without any complaint. I enlisted into the Force on July 1, 2002 and had worked at various formations. The moment SP Gbadegeshin came to Bariga that was when I started having trouble. He told me he wanted to go out with me which I subtly declined on the ground that I was married. I told him I had grown up children, some are even giving birth but he insisted that he must see what is in my buttocks or see me out of the force.
“He further accused me of sleeping with Inspector Damilola Adeoye stressing that he Adeoye had nothing to offer me. Even when I told him that we were simply colleagues, he refused to believe me. On several occasions, he would default me and detained me in the cell for no reason. As if that was not enough, he placed me on Indefinite ‘standby’. When the situation became unbearable and I had no male friends in the Division again for fear of being accused of sleeping with me, I cried to the woman Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of Admin at the Command Headquarters Ikeja who helped and transferred me to Alagbado Division.
“But even after the signal came out, the DPO refused to release me until the AC A had to call our Area Commander then before I was released. I left since last year September for Alagbado my new posting only for the present Provost Marshall to call us again this year that we had matter to settle and another orderly room trial started for a matter that we had resolved and a letter of withdrawal to the petition written. After the trial, we were told we had 7 working days to appeal, that’s where are now. I want Nigerians especially, the Inspector-General of Police IGP Kayode Egbetokun, a father to look into this matter dispassionately. To be sent out of a Force I had served for twenty something years because I refused to open my legs for a DPO, sounds awkward.”
But for Inspector Adeoye Damilola, his ordel with the DPO started with his close association with the said Woman Inspector. “It was a date on Sunday April 2023 that ASP John called me that the DPO wants to see me and I asked hope there was no problem and he said no, that he simply asked him to call me. So I went to his office, gave the normal compliment. He called and asked me what was my relationship with woman inspector Modupe and I said nothing, that we were simply workmates.
He shifted from his sofa, brought out his personal AK 47 Assault rifle put it on the floor and asked me to cross the gun and swear to die by gun in the next 7 days if I didn’t sleep with the woman inspector this night. I said Oga, this is unprofessional, how can I cross your gun for something I didn’t do. He was screaming at the top of his voice that I was contesting his woman friend with him.
Even Supol John who called me to his office was shocked at the weird scenario. Supol John said, ‘Oga this is turning to something else o, if I had known I would not have called the Inspector o’.
“I told him I will not cross the gun. Since then he started victimising me. Severally, he would default and detained me in cell for days; sometimeswith armed robbers. He would send me on a special duty, come to the place and detained me. I was placed on ‘standby’ till further notice. The situation became rife when the said woman inspector left last year and he called me and said, ‘you, you have made my woman to leave my Division, I will make sure both of you leave the Force’. When the Federal government wanted to renovate the 3rd Mainland Bridge, he posted me there on permanent duty. For the period the renovation lasted, I was there with the workers and the DPO will visit ther thrice a day to make sure that I was there. When the Bridge was reopened, I resumed for duty and he saw me and asked if I was just coming to work and told him it was traffic on the way but he refused to listen to me. I was bundled inside the cell and my Andriod Spark Teccno phone which I bought for N75,000 which contained photographs of his civilian relative in police camouflage bearing AK 47 rife and incriminating evidences against him was, was seized from me.
“As I speak, my phone is still with him. It was therefore, shocking for the present Provost who we learnt is also a coursemate to our DPO, to again invite us for an orderly room trial in a matter that had been settled since early this year.”
But reacting, SP Gbadegeshin said he was not authorised to speak to the press over the matter saying the matter was duly investigated before the action taken. “Sir I a m not authorised to speà k to the press on Police mà tttérs. The matter you referred to here wà s à subject of thorough investigation by Area Commà ñder ‘H’ añd a Pà iñstà king Orderly Room Procedure sequel to a strong petÃtion to the offÃce of thé ÇommÃssioner of Police conducted. Yoú may çoñtà ct the à pproprÃate à uthóritÃes fór further clarÃfications, Sir,” he added.
Contacted, the command’s
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