Policemen Have Right To Search You Without Warrant – Delta Command Spokesman
The Delta State Police Command has declared that its officers have the right to search people’s bags and pockets without a warrant.
The Command’s spokesperson, SP Bright Edafe, stated this on Saturday in a post on X while announcing the arrest of a suspected thief caught with a firearm.
He wrote, “Do the police have the right to search you randomly without a search warrant? The answer is yes; search you and not your houses or your phones. But to search you, your bag, pockets, is allowed.
“This chap was standing at a club around 5am looking suspicious when operatives of RRS intercepted and searched him, and this gun was recovered. Listen to his reason for taking the gun to the club.”
In a video posted with the statement, Edafe narrated how operatives of the Rapid Response Squad on visibility patrol along DBS Road, near Don and Master, stopped a young man carrying a bag suspiciously.
“When his bag was searched, this gun was found in his bag, this is the magazine and these are the ammunitions that were recovered from him,” Edafe said.
He identified the suspect as 39-year-old Bassey Udoh from Akwa Ibom, adding that investigation revealed he specialised in stealing generators.
“Bassey Udoh did not only have this in his possession. In the course of our investigation, we discovered that he usually scales through the fence of people’s houses while they’re sleeping and steals their generator.
“At times he uses the gate to come out or also takes it out through the fence. The time of their operation is usually between 4am and 5am,” the police spokesman stated.
Udoh, who confessed he had lived in Delta State for three years, admitted to breaking into about nine houses in the last two months to steal generators.
“I’ve not entered more than nine people’s houses. Some people buy the generator for N40,000 or N35,000,” he confessed.
When questioned about the firearm, he claimed it was not meant for robbery but for display at a club.
“I was holding it, I did not use it to rob. It was for flexing at a club. I put it in my waist,” Udoh said.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
