The Chairman of the Abia State chapter of the Online Media Practitioners Association of Nigeria (OMPAN), Chief Promise Uzoma Okoro, has alleged that a police officer, Mr. Francis Atama, attempted to kidnap and kill him.
Narrating his ordeal at a press conference in Umuahia, Chief Okoro claimed that Mr. Atama, who is attached to the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) Abuja, trailed him to the OMPAN secretariat on December 6, 2024.
According to Chief Okoro, Mr. Atama presented himself as a client who wanted to publish a story, but his real intention was to abduct him. He alleged that Mr. Atama’s actions were unprofessional and showed a high disregard for the relationship between online media practitioners in Abia State and the Nigeria Police Force.
“I was not in town on the day of the incident, but my secretary, Dr. Steve Unegbu, met with Mr. Atama, who refused to brief him on the details of the story,” Chief Okoro said. “It was clear that Mr. Atama’s intention was to kidnap me, and possibly kill me.”
Chief Okoro expressed his gratitude to the Abia State Police Commissioner, CP Danladi Isa, for condemning the failed attempt. He also submitted a formal complaint to the Complaint Response Unit of the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters Abuja against Mr. Francis Atama.
“I will never be intimidated, succumb to harassment by any highly-placed individual who may want to use the security agencies to intimidate people because they feel they have the money to spend,” Chief Okoro declared.
The statement reads in part:
Dear colleagues, I wish to address a very dangerous scenario that played out here in our State Secretariat on Friday, 6th December, 2024, when an officer of the Nigeria Police Force ,from the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Force Headquarters, Abuja, trailed me to this office in a failed attempt to abduct me and whisk me away to Abuja to detain me over the weekend, and possibly arraign me before an ‘already-awaiting Magistrate Court over an alleged case of defamation, without prior invitation to me by the police.
Worrisome was the manner in which Mr Francis Atama, who led the police officers from the FCID Abuja, attempted to use subtle means to get at me, abduct me and keep me away from my family over a petition written by a yet to identify individual.
Maybe, that Friday, news would have gone that Chairman of Online Media Publishers in Abia was abducted by unknown gunmen’ from his office in Umuahia and maybe when my family and friends would be in the know that it was police officers, I would have been remanded in an Abuja prison, and the matter possibly adjourned to any day and month of their choice in 2025.
How Mr Francis Atama illegally trailed me to this Secretariat
Mr Francis Atama, the officer who led the team from the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) Abuja trailed me to our Online Media State Secretariat located here at No 54 Eket Street by Enugu Road, Umuahia, the Abia State capital on Friday, 6th December 2024, and deceitfully claimed that he had a media publication he wanted me Online Media People to do for him and was sent by a former Director of FMC in Enugu.
According to him, the media publication he wanted to pay me to publish involved the kidnapping of a Prince , in an Ezeship tussle by two brothers in Enugu and a property disagreement. He claimed that he wanted the story to be published that Friday so he could return to Enugu.
The secretary of our Union, Dr Steve Unegbu, who was called, rushed down to this office, and met him inside our office. When he (Unegbu) asked him to brief him about the matter so he can write it, dangerously enough, Mr Atama refused and insisted that ‘his Oga’ told him that the Chairman is the only person he should open up to about the details of the story. All these were lies and childish deceit employed by Mr Atama to ensure that I hurriedly come to the office and meet him.
Unfortunately for them and fortunately for me, I wasn’t in town that day, but when our Secretary called me and briefed me about the insistence of Mr Atama, I demanded the phone number of the man who desperately wanted to pay me for a publication. It was then that I discovered that the name of the man is Mr Francis Atama, and that his real intentions were to kidnap me, assassinate me or arrest me, as all his claims of coming from Enugu were proved to be false. These were unravelled as a result of my preliminary investigation of all his claims.
I quickly told our Secretary to inform him that I won’t see him because his intentions and claims were all false. Our Secretary informed him, and he said he will lodge at Eastern Comfort Hotel in Umuahia.
In a bid to verify the identity of Mr Atama, I called the Police Public Relations Officer of the Abia State Police Command, ASP MAUREEN CHINAKA, to ask her if there was a matter against me due to my suspicion that the man might be a kidnapper or a security officer, she told me in clear terms that there was no such matter before her table and asked me to come and see the Commissioner of Police, CP Danladi Isa on Monday by 12noon.
The following day, being 7th December 2024, I called his phone number, and Mr Francis Atama still maintained his false and deceitful claims of wanting me to publish a story for him. I told him in clear terms that his story was not connecting and he should come out clean to tell me if he is a police officer or from the DSS, but instead Mr Atama asked me: ‘Did I tell you I am a policeman?’ He tried all his best to convince me to wait for him at any police station, but unfortunately, a trained journalist of my nature cannot be set up with such a childish story.
I immediately complained to a sister in Abuja over the fact that an unknown man had been insisting and mounting pressure to see me, claiming that he wanted to do a publication, whereas I din’t know him and who he claimed that sent him.
It was after the call of my sister, that Atama now sent me an invitation by 9:16 am on Monday 9th December 2024.(I printed a copy of his WhatsApp message)The letter he sent to me was dated 4th December, whereas they came to Umuahia to arrest me on the 6th December without any prior official invitation.
The actions of Mr Francis Atama shows unprofessionalism, high disregard to the relationship between Online Media Practitioners in Abia State and the Nigeria Police Force, especially Abia State Police Command.
It is important to state clearly, that there was no official Police Invitation sent to me by Mr Francis Atama and his team before they travelled from far away Abuja to Umuahia that is over 7000 times to arrest me like a common criminal, I have never jumped bail since my life and I have never been detained at any police station for an alleged offence, This is a calculated attempt to embarrass my office as Chairman of Online Media Practitioners Association in Abia State, disgrace my personality, remand me in Prison for Christmas and New Year Season to satisfy the petitioner. If this was not the plan, the police would have done the right thing by sending me an official invitation or better still, Mr Atama would have opened up when he entered our secretariat and found out that I am the Chairman of Online Media Practitioners in Abia State.
As a Chairman of a recognized Union in Abia State and Nigeria, we have built synergy with security agencies and I am worried that this man wanted to embarrass my office and breach the already-existing relationship with the Nigeria Police Force.
I wish to state categorically clear that I will never be intimidated, succumb to harassment by any highly-placed individual who may want to use the security agencies to intimidate people because they feel they have the money to spend.
On Monday, colleagues accompanied me to the Abia State Police Command to register our displeasure over the failed attempt to embarrass, intimidate and abduct me in such a shameful manner.
I want to thank the Abia State Police Commissioner, CP Danladi Isa, for condemning the failed attempt and I want to reassure him that OMPAN will continue to work in synergy with the police in the fight against crime and criminality in Abia State.
I have submitted a formal complaint to the Complaint Response Unit of the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters Abuja against Mr Francis Atama and I want to call on the Chairman of the Police Service Commission, DIG.Hashimu Argungu (Rtd)
to look into this ugly development and handle the unprofessional conduct of Mr Francis Atama of the FCID and his team on Friday 6th December 2024.
And to the Petitioner, rushing to attempt using the Police to harass man has failed.
