The Anambra State Police Command has arrested Assistant Superintendent of Police Newton Isokpehi after a viral video showed him threatening to kill or shoot people who filmed him while he was on duty. The command said on Thursday that disciplinary proceedings had begun against the officer.
In the video, Isokpehi warned that he would “clear everybody down” if anyone tried to record him, and said any superior officer who approved filming policemen would be forced to bury the citizens he vowed to kill. He also threatened to shoot dead every passenger in a bus if someone in the vehicle filmed him while he was working. The footage spread across X and Instagram before it was later deleted from his TikTok account.
The state command said the officer was identified by name and rank after a prompt review of the clip. Deputy Commissioner of Police Ngozi Ezeabata issued the statement on Thursday on behalf of Commissioner of Police Ikioye Orutugu, saying the command had “immediately identified and arrested the officer involved.” She added that “internal disciplinary proceedings have since been activated against the officer,” and said he had also undergone a drug test as part of the investigation.
Force spokesperson Anthony Placid said the officer had been summoned to the Anambra police headquarters, where disciplinary procedures had commenced. He said the force considered the conduct and words in the clip “unacceptable, unprofessional, and inconsistent with the ethics, standards, and code of conduct of the Nigeria Police Force.” He also said the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, had maintained that members of the public have the right to lawfully record police officers carrying out their duties so long as the filming does not obstruct operations, compromise safety or interfere with lawful police activity.
The video drew wider attention because it surfaced on social media platforms including X, Instagram and TikTok, and because it ran against the police force’s own position on public accountability and transparency. In a later video, Isokpehi apologized and said, “I didn’t mean it like that but due to annoyance that some people have started making videos about police officers. They should not do us like that.” He also said he had spent 26 years in service and complained about poor working conditions and welfare in the police force.
The arrest now moves the episode from viral outrage to formal discipline, with the command and the wider police force publicly treating the officer’s threats as a breach of duty rather than a one-off outburst. The key next step is the outcome of the internal proceedings already started at the Anambra police headquarters.
Related reporting on police discipline can be found in Nigeria Police Force Officer Dismissal: Five inspectors sacked over kidnappings.
