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HomeNewsAmnesty Int’l Demands Release Of 22-Year-Old Gloria Okolie

Amnesty Int’l Demands Release Of 22-Year-Old Gloria Okolie

A global rights group, Amnesty International, has demanded the release of a 22-year-old lady, Glory Okolie, by operatives of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) in Imo State.
Okolie was arrested on June 17 and used as bait to lure and arrest her boyfriend who is suspected to be a member of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

Following a petition by a human rights activist, Harrison Gwamnishu, the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, ordered a probe into the alleged detention of Okolie and the claim that she was cooking and washing for IRT officers.

But in a statement in Abuja on Sunday signed by the Deputy Spokesman of the Force, Aremu Adeniran, Police claim that the arrested lady is an IPOB member and a spy for the outlawed group.

It added that Okolie was part of the IPOB team that unleashed violent attacks on police stations, INEC offices and the killing of police officers in Imo.

Reacting to the lady’s arrest in a statement via its Twitter page on Monday, Amnesty International asked the Nigeria Police Force to release Gloria Okolie with immediate effect.

The rights group, however, expressed displeasure at the prolonged detention of the young lady, saying that it has documented several cases of ill-treatment including sexual abuse of women in police detention.

The statement read, “The Nigerian Police must release Gloria Okolie. The 21-year-old student has been in detention since 17 June 2021 for alleged involvement with a suspected ESN/IPOB member.

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“Her lawyer told Amnesty International that she was arrested by the IRT unit of the Nigerian Police in Imo State and taken to Abuja where she remains in detention without access to her family members and lawyer in violation of her human rights.

“Her lawyer also alleges that Gloria has been subjected to ill-treatment while in detention. The police also continued to extorting her family on false promises to release her.

“We are calling on police authorities to immediately release her or charge her with a recognisable offence. The police authorities must investigate her prolonged detention and alleged ill-treatment and ensure that officers found culpable are punished according to law.

“Amnesty International has in the past documented several cases of ill-treatment including sexual abuse of women in police detention.”

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