The Divisional Police Officer of Ugborikoko Police Station in Warri, Delta State, has been accused of ordering and supervising some officers, who were on house raids, to flog 15 women with 40 strokes of wire, strip them naked, and force them to admit to being prostitutes.

One of the victims, Janet James George, who narrated her ordeal to human rights activist, Harrison Gwamnishu, in a video shared on X on Saturday, alleged that the officers stripped them naked and forced them into admitting being prostitutes.

Mr Gwamnishu said, “Last week Thursday, I went to a shop in Delta Mall to hang out with a friend. When I got there, a Sienna came, everybody and I ran inside Shoprite. When I entered, the Chief Security told me to stand there, I stood, then Sienna came to carry all of us. We were about 15.

“They took us to Ugborikoko Police Station where we spent Thursday night. On Friday morning when their DPO came, they took us to the DPO’s office. So, she instructed two guys, they were on mufti, not on uniform, they wore the normal clothes to flog us forty something strokes. We weren’t with our phones, so none of us knew the time of the day it was, but we left there towards 4:00 p.m.

“The DPO instructed them to beat us. If she asks you if you’re a prostitute, and you say no, you’ll be slapped on both sides of your face and she’ll flog you. They flogged us at that place, for us to give statement that were into prostitution in Delta State. They used wire, there’s a black kind of stick, if they flog you and the stick breaks, there’s wire inside.

“They flogged us naked, flogged us on our private parts, some of us, our breasts come out. She wasn’t the only person there, there were some men sitting and surrounded us, except the two guys who held the wire and be flogging us, there were so many people in the office.

“After the flogging, I wrote statement that I’m into prostitution in Delta. They made a video of us and started the flogging. They flogged all of us, both the girl they caught on Keke, they said they saw condom in her bag. They went to play ground club, they carried them, joined us together, slept together till the next day. They flogged us the way they liked and sent away.

‘They flogged my private part, for me to toilet and urinate, for the past one week, has been very difficult. All these injuries on my laps here, it’s the Ugborikoko Police woman that instructed the guys to do this to me. This happened to me on the 10th of April. I need justice, I’ve been in the house for a very long time.”

Responding to the video, the spokesperson for the command, Bright Edafe, who condemned the actions of the officers, assured that the matter is being looked into and urged the victim to reach out to him.

Mr Edafe wrote, “The command has received this report which is so painful and very sad, no human being should be given this treatment no matter what. The command is presently giving it fall the attention it deserves. We also urge the victim to reach out to the command through the PPRO office or call 09155570008.”