IGP, Benue Govt Should Intervene, Police Are Preventing From Seeing My Son In Detention In Benue – Myietti Allah leader 

From Attah Ede, Makurdi

The Benue State Chairman of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), Ardo Muhammed Risku, has raised alarm over  his inability to have access to his son who has been in police custody in Makurdi, the State capital.

He therefore called on the Inspector-General of Police and the Benue State Government to intervene in the detention of his son, Mahmuda Risku, by the police in the state.

Risku made the appeal during a press conference on Sunday in Makurdi, where he alleged that his son was arrested while grazing cattle near a stream in Ogobia community, Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State.

He said the incident occurred on February 1, 2026.

According to him, his son had taken 48 cattle in search of pasture when some vigilantes in Ogobia arrested him near a stream where he had taken the animals to drink water. He alleged that during the process, the vigilantes shot at the cattle, causing them to scatter in different directions.

Risku said the vigilantes later handed his son over to the police at the Otukpo Divisional Police Office, where he was taken into custody, adding that he was informed of the development through a phone call from the station.

He said he requested that a phone be given to his son so they could speak, and the son narrated that he had not committed any offence but was only tending to his cattle when the vigilantes appeared and arrested him.

Risku further said that when he asked the police about the alleged offence, he was told that his son was accused of a burnt rice farm, an allegation his son denied. He explained that he was in Makurdi at the time of the incident and planned to travel to Otukpo the following day to see his son but was later informed by the police that the matter would be transferred to Makurdi.

He said he waited at the Benue State Police Headquarters in Makurdi but later called his eldest son to inquire about the missing cattle and was told that only 10 animals returned with bullet wounds, while the remaining 38 were still missing.

Risku said that while waiting at the police headquarters, where he had already lodged a complaint, he was later informed that his son had been transferred to the Operation Zenda office on the directive of the Commissioner of Police.

“I went to the Operation Zenda office, but they refused to allow me see my son. The next day, the case was taken to court, and I was present when my son was brought in by Zenda operatives. However, before the court could take action on the matter, the Commissioner of Police ordered that my son be returned to Zenda custody,” he said.

Risku said his son remains in Operation Zenda custody without being properly charged to court or granted access to his family, adding that the police claimed they were still investigating the case.

He said his son was accused of burning a rice farm, an allegation he said his personal findings showed was false, noting that the farm, with remnants of rice chaff, had been burnt more than a month before his son’s arrest. He added that the police claimed the damage was valued at N18 million and demanded payment.

“My lawyer went to secure my son’s bail, but they said I must first pay N18 million as damages. I do not have such money, and besides, my son is innocent. They are not even addressing the issue of my missing cattle but are instead demanding money for my son’s release. Meanwhile, I gathered that the missing cattle are in police custody in Otukpo, yet my son remains detained,” he said.

Risku expressed concern over the continued detention, alleging that Operation Zenda was known for torturing suspects in custody. He cited instances involving his relatives, whom he claimed were tortured and later remanded in prison in critical health conditions.

“So I want the world to know that the Commissioner of Police is preventing my son from appearing in court. He should allow the matter to be properly taken to court so that we can abide by any legal outcome. Otherwise, the Commissioner of Police should be held responsible if anything happens to my son while in Operation Zenda custody,” he said.

He appealed to the government to look into the matter, describing himself as a law abiding citizen who has lived in Otukpo all his life, adding that he wants his son released.

“I have made efforts to see the Commissioner of Police, but all have been unsuccessful. I even tried reaching him on the telephone but could not,” Risku said.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Udeme Edet, simply said that the matter was under investigation.