The Isolo Local Council Development Area of Lagos State has said it is probing the extortion of a 77-year-old man, Dotun Falua, allegedly by taskforce officials in the Okota area of the state.
Damilola Kushimo, the Deputy Chief Press Secretary to the LCDA Chairman, Bayo Olasoju, disclosed this in a WhatsApp chat with one of our correspondents on Wednesday.
“Investigation is ongoing,” Kushimo said.
PUNCH Metro on Monday reported that Falua, who is a retiree, accused the task force officials of extorting him N55,000 in the area while on his way from the Airport Road where he visited a family friend.
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences Unit has denied the involvement of its officials in the extortion.
The unit gave an indication that “unscrupulous individuals parading themselves as officials of the Lagos State Taskforce” could be responsible for the extortion.
The agency, in a statement by its Director, Press and Public Affairs, Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, on Tuesday, condemned the extortion.
The statement quoted the chairman, CSP Shola Jejeloye, as describing the extortion as the handiwork of mischief makers who had been on the radar of the agency and would be made to answer for their crimes in the nearest future.
The statement read, “This is not the first time we are being accused of actions like this which turn out to be false but the handiworks of enemies of a serene, habitable and secure environment and impostors who are hell-bent on dragging our name in the mud.
“We have been on the trail of this set of people scattered across the metropolis, impersonating officials of the task force to extort innocent Lagosians. We have put mechanisms in place to put a stop to it permanently.
“There is no Task Force Office in Okota, and as of the time of the extortion, our men were busy in other locations.”
Jejeloye said how the men apprehended and extorted the victim went against the tenets and modus operandi of the Lagos State Taskforce.
He added, “Once an offender is apprehended, the vehicle is impounded and taken down to the task force yard in Alausa, while the offender is charged to the court which is the terminal end of all traffic enforcement.
“We operate according to global best practices and that is why we do not apprehend without the agency’s branded vehicle being visible on the scene.
“Our men are well-kitted with visible emblems and unique identification numbers inscribed on the front and back of their tactical jackets for easy identification. Vehicles are taken down to the task force yard in Alausa when impounded while the offender is asked to come to the mobile court at our headquarters.”
Jejeloye advised the victim to visit the agency’s headquarters for further investigations into the incident.
