NYSC Member Flees PPA, Goes Into Hiding Over Alleged Police Manhunt After Father’s Arrest In Property Dispute | Sahara Reporters

Benton, in the petition dated September 15, 2026, said the alleged police harassment has forced him to abandon his Place of Primary Assignment (PPA) in Abia State and go into hiding.

A serving National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, Ejiofor Benton, has fled his Place of Primary Assignment (PPA) in Abia State and gone into hiding, alleging that officers of the Imo State Police Command are hunting him after his father, Mr Macqueen Ejiofor, was allegedly unlawfully arrested and detained for five days over a family property dispute.

Benton, in a petition to the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, which was obtained by SaharaReporters, alleged that his elderly father was arbitrarily arrested and detained in Imo State and that police officers are now pursuing him over an alleged threat against a relative based in the United Kingdom.

Benton, in the petition dated September 15, 2026, said the alleged police harassment has forced him to abandon his Place of Primary Assignment (PPA) in Abia State and go into hiding.

He also alleged that the development has affected his health, national service and farming activities.

Benton said the crisis began on September 1, when about six armed police officers allegedly arrived at his father’s residence in Umukor, Nkwerre, Imo State, while the elderly man was preparing breakfast.

He alleged that the officers arrested his father and took him to the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Owerri, which he said operates the Anti-Cultism Unit.

According to him, the police officers bypassed Nkwerre Police Station.

Benton said that his father was not informed at the time of his arrest of the specific offence he was alleged to have committed.

“It was only after he was transported to Owerri that he was informed that the officers were acting on the direct instructions and financial inducement of his elder sister, who resides in England,” he said.

“My father remained in hostile police custody from September 1, 2026 until September 5, 2026, when he was eventually released on highly restrictive bail terms.”

He alleged that the detention has taken a physical and emotional toll on his father, who, according to him, subsequently required medical treatment.

Benton described the arrest as an alleged abuse of police powers in what he characterised as a family dispute involving property.

“I am deeply concerned that an elderly man was abducted from his home by heavily armed police officers without due process, simply to satisfy the vendetta of an overseas financier,” Benton said.

He lamented that the matter subsequently shifted to him, alleging that police officers have been attempting to locate and arrest him over an accusation that he threatened his aunt.

Benton said, “I have been informed by reliable sources that the same group of police officers has been heavily incentivized to locate and arrest me by all means possible.

“I understand that the fabricated allegation against me is that I have been threatening my aunt.

“I categorically and firmly deny this allegation. I have not spoken to my aunt for more than one year.

“I find the allegation that I am threatening someone residing in England extremely disturbing and legally impossible.”

Benton said he was willing to cooperate with any legitimate investigation but objected to what he described as an attempt to arrest him over an allegation he considers unfounded.

“I am prepared to cooperate fully with any legitimate, untainted investigation, but I respectfully submit that I should not be subjected to harassment, arbitrary arrest, or physical persecution over an allegation that has been entirely manufactured to force our family into compliance over a civil property issue,” he said.

He alleged that the police pursuit has become so intense that he was forced to leave his PPA in Abia State.

“As a result of this aggressive and active hunt for me, I have been forced to flee my Place of Primary Assignment (PPA) in Abia State and go into deep hiding because I genuinely fear for my safety and liberty,” he said.

“I am a serving NYSC corps member, and this situation has put my service year and personal safety at severe risk. Furthermore, this nightmare has triggered a severe crisis for my health.”

The NYSC officially identifies the protection and welfare of corps members as a policy priority under its current leadership.

Benton further told SaharaReporters that he was suffering from severe malaria while in hiding and had been unable to safely leave his location to seek medical attention.

“I am currently down with a severe bout of malaria. Because I am running for my life from these officers, I have completely lost my freedom of movement.

“I cannot step out to visit a hospital or safely contact any health service for treatment, leaving me dangerously ill in hiding,” he said.

He added that his absence from his farm was also causing financial losses because his cucumber crops were allegedly deteriorating due to his inability to tend to them.

Benton alleged that the circumstances surrounding his father’s arrest, and the subsequent police manhunt for him, had created serious fears for his safety.

He accused unnamed police officers of being influenced by his aunt to harass, intimidate, arrest and assault him and his father over a private family dispute.

“I am deeply concerned that the machinery of the Nigeria Police Force is being heavily weaponized by a wealthy diaspora sponsor to settle a private family dispute,” he said.

Benton therefore asked the Inspector-General of Police to order an investigation into his father’s arrest and detention between September 1 and September 5, including the identity and authority of the officers involved.

He also requested an investigation into what he described as the alleged financial inducement of the officers involved.

He urged the police authorities to establish whether there was credible evidence supporting the allegation that he threatened his relative in the United Kingdom.

“If the police genuinely require my presence for a legitimate investigation, I request that I be formally and safely invited through transparent procedures, rather than being pursued like a criminal, which has forced me into hiding while battling malaria,” he said.

Benton further requested protection for his fundamental rights and an investigation into whether officers at the State CID, Owerri, acted outside lawful police procedures.

I wish to make it absolutely clear that I have nothing to hide. If there is a genuine, lawful complaint against me, I am completely willing to report to an uncompromised formation to respond through the appropriate legal process,” he said.

“My only request is that my rights as a Nigerian citizen and a serving NYSC corps member be respected, and that I am not treated as a fugitive merely because an affluent overseas relative is pulling strings.”

He also asked the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to monitor the petition and ensure the safety of both him and his father.

“I am frightened, traumatised, and dangerously ill with malaria in hiding. I have been compelled to abandon my national service post and my farm to escape arbitrary detention,” Benton said.

He appealed to the Inspector-General of Police to urgently intervene and ensure that any further police action against him or his father complies with Nigerian law.

Efforts by SaharaReporters to reach the Imo State Police Command’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Henry Okoye, on his mobile line for comment were unsuccessful. He had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.