PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria — Police authorities in Nigeria’s oil-rich Rivers State have dismissed three officers over the fatal shooting of 22-year-old University of Port Harcourt graduate Anthony Obodo and say the officers will face criminal prosecution. Inspector Solomon Nworgu, another member of the patrol team who allegedly fled after the Aug. 27 shooting in the Ada George area of Port Harcourt, has been declared a deserter as police continue efforts to locate him.
Obodo was driving a vehicle near Agip Junction when officers attempted to stop him, according to the police account. A patrol team pursued the vehicle after he allegedly failed to stop, and Corporal Alfred Louis fired at it during the chase, Rivers State Police Commissioner Olugbenga Adepoju said. One of the bullets struck Obodo, who was taken to Palmer’s Hospital in Port Harcourt and later pronounced dead. The dismissed officers have been identified in reports as Assistant Superintendent of Police Fabian Kpeanabari, Corporal Alfred Louis and Police Constable Michael Ejokwu.
Adepoju said the officers were detained at the State Criminal Investigation Department and subjected to an “orderly room trial,” an internal disciplinary proceeding used by the Nigeria Police Force to investigate alleged misconduct. The commissioner said the investigation established culpability and that the three officers would be brought before a court. “We will not shield any officer found to have acted outside the law under my watch,” Adepoju said.
The shooting sparked several days of protests in Port Harcourt as Obodo’s relatives, friends and residents demanded justice. His father, Princewill Obodo, said his son was a recent graduate awaiting his National Youth Service Corps call-up and rejected attempts to portray him as a criminal. The Nigerian Bar Association also intervened, meeting police authorities and calling for a fair and transparent investigation. After the dismissals, the association stressed that the disciplinary proceedings were only one stage of the case and that the criminal justice process had yet to be completed.
The killing has revived longstanding concerns about police use of force and accountability in Nigeria. In 2020, nationwide #EndSARS demonstrations erupted over allegations of extortion, torture and extrajudicial killings by the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad. The protests became one of Nigeria’s largest youth-led movements in decades and drew international attention to police conduct. Similar concerns resurfaced after the 2022 killing of Lagos lawyer Bolanle Raheem by a police officer at a checkpoint; the officer was later convicted of murder.
Obodo’s case is now expected to move from internal police discipline to the courts, where prosecutors will determine the criminal charges against the dismissed officers. The Rivers police command says excessive force and abuse of office will not be tolerated, while the Nigerian Bar Association has pledged to continue following the case. For Obodo’s family and protesters who have taken to the streets, attention is now focused on whether the dismissals will be followed by a transparent prosecution and a final judicial determination of responsibility for his death.
