EMMA Adimachukwu, father of deceased Obinna Sandy said operatives of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery (SARS) in Anambra state killed his son in their custody and collected N400,000 from him to feed him.
Adimachukwu, who is a school proprietor in Delta State told his story to the Anambra State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on police brutality, extral judicial killings, and other related matters on Tuesday.
Adimachukwu, an indigene of Oraifite in the Ekwusigo Local Government Area, but a resident in Asaba, Delta State, said his son Obinna Sandy, a businessman, was killed in 2014.
According to him, Obinna was a graduate of the Nnamdi Azikwe University where he studied Business Administration. After his education, he opened a clothing shop for Obinna Mount Olive shopping plaza Onitsha, Anambra state.
“He travelled to India to buy clothes. On March 14, 2014, he went to Nnewi and collected $10,000 owed him by a friend and proceeded to Onitsha to take delivery of his goods that just arrived.
Adimachukwu added that while his son was waiting for his goods, SARS operatives arrived at the scene and started shooting before they searched Obinna and found $10,000 on him.
“It was while waiting for the goods that some SARS men arrived and started shooting. They arrested him and his friend. They searched him and saw $10,000 on him and concluded he was an armed robber.
“My son refused to let them take the money, he fought them. So, when they got to Awkuzu SARS, they killed him.”
Adimachukwu further narrated that when he went to see Obinna and his friend, N400,000 was collected from him for the purpose of feeding his son who he did not know has been killed.
“When I went to see him after his friend who was smuggled out told me of it, James Nwafor (SARS boss) told his men to lock me up that I was a father to an armed robber. Some prominent people intervened and they released me.
They later told me to drop money so they can be feeding my son, and they collected N400,000 from me, knowing full well that they had killed my son,” Adimachukwu said.
Nwafor was invited to the panel but he has refused to show up to defend himself from the allegations levied against him.
However, the panel sitting headed by Veronica Umeh, a retired judge of the State High Court and Chairman of the panel was suspended due to logistic reasons.
“We will have to discontinue sitting because of logistics reasons, we will not sit until the needful is done,” Umeh said at the sitting.
Abdul Mahmud, counsel to one of the petitioners had raised a motion that the portraits of Willie Obiano, Governor of Anambra, and President Muhammadu Buhari hung at the venue of the sitting portrays it as an executive panel.
Lukman Abolade is an Investigative reporter with The ICIR. Reach out to him via [email protected], on twitter @AboladeLAA and FB @Correction94