IGP Orders SWAT Squad Out Of Nembe Hotel Over Unsettled N625m

The Inspector -General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun has accepted the quit notice issued by proprietor of Euphemie Motel to the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit of the Nigeria Police Force lodged in the hotel at Opu-Nembe in Bayelsa State.
The order from the Inspector-General of Police was issued following the threat to drag the IGP Egbetokun to court over the alleged unpaid debt incurred by the Police SWAT team since August 12th, 2023.
The debt, according to the report, was incurred by the Police Special squad led by one CSP Silas Adebayo for a reported sting operation in the Opu-Nembe community ahead of the last Governorship elections in the state in November 2023.
The SWAT team was alleged to have forcibly occupied the Motel and turned it into their operational base without permission from the owners.
The counsel to the owner of Euphemie Motel, Inemoye Maxwell Brown in a letter dated 9th of October, 2024, confirmed to newsmen in Yenagoa that the police high command had acceded to their appeal to move the police squad out of the motel.
Brown however called on the Inspector-General of Police and the force headquarters to comply with the second appeal in the petition of the client requesting that the sum of N625 million covering the period the police stayed at the hotel to be paid within six weeks upon receipt of the correspondence.
Euphemie Motel had petitioned the Inspector-General of Police and the Chairman, Police Service Commission that the 50-bedroom hotel with lodging fee of N25,000 per night and two conference rooms of N100,000 per day with indoor and outdoor relaxation spots, was occupied by the Police personnel without payment for over 13 months.
According to Brown, “Our client’s business premises and the facilities are almost in complete ruin and a complete renovation is imminent. And it is imperative to restore their facilities with a view to return to normal business.”