The Rivers State Police Command has come under fire after being accused of fatally shooting a 300-level student of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) to his gr@ve and attempting to cover up the incident.
The grieving family of 23-year-old Godwin Akpakpan, while speaking newsmen alleged that police officers were responsible for his death. Godwin, who had been missing since April 16, was described by relatives as “gentle and full of life.” He was the third of seven siblings.
A devastated family member recounted that Godwin disappeared last Wednesday after watching an Arsenal football match. “He is a 300-level student in the Faculty of Education,” the source said.
The next day, April 17, relatives and classmates repeatedly called his phone, only for a police officer to eventually answer, instructing them to report to the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Homicide Division.
Upon arrival, the family’s worst fears were realized. They were informed — without any formal documentation — that Godwin had been shot and killed. The police claimed he had been caught in the crossfire during an encounter with a soldier while in a mini-bus, but the family found the explanation suspicious and deeply troubling..
According to the police account, a patrol team from the Dragon Division (SARS Road, Port Harcourt) had stopped the mini-bus for a search. Allegedly finding hard drugs, they arrested all passengers. While transporting them to the station, they claimed to have encountered an Army checkpoint where a "soldier" opened fire, purportedly trying to free the arrested individuals, with a stray bullet killing Godwin.
However, inconsistencies quickly surfaced.
The family was made to wait hours at the station and were repeatedly asked to return on different days. When finally allowed to see Godwin’s body at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) mortuary, they found it in deplorable condition — covered in sand, with two gunshot wounds to the stomach, bruises on his hands and forehead, and an injury on his back.
At the Anti-Cultism Dragon Division office, more doubts arose. The family observed officers holding secretive meetings, and when visiting the alleged crime scene along the East-West Road near Alakaya (where Godwin lived), they found it did not match the location described in police statements. Police officers warned them not to investigate further, citing fabricated "safety concerns."
"We are convinced this is not an Army shooting," a family member said bitterly. "It is the Police. They have done this before, and they will do it again."
The family was also outraged to discover that Inspector Festus from the Homicide Department had taken Godwin’s body to the mortuary without notifying them — even while they were still desperately searching for him.
Photographs obtained by SaharaReporters showed a bullet hole in the mini-bus with plate number YAB-476XG and graphic images of Godwin’s battered body, corroborating the family's claims of excessive violence.
When SaharaReporters reached out to Grace Iringe-Koko, Public Relations Officer of the Rivers State Police Command, she confirmed that the case had been reported but declined further comment as of the time of filing this report.
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