The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has ordered the SWAT team stationed at Euphemie Motel in Nembe-Bassambiri community of Bayelsa State to leave the hotel.
The IGP’s order follows a quit notice issued by the owner of Euphemie Motel, which directly instructed the SWAT team to leave the premises.
Egbetokun’s order is in response to a threat by the hotelier to take legal action against him over an alleged unpaid debt incurred by the Police SWAT team, which had been deployed since August 12, 2023.
According to reports, the lodging debt was incurred by the police special squad, led by one CSP Silas Adebayo, during a sting operation in the community ahead of last year’s governorship elections.
The SWAT team allegedly invaded Nembe Bassambiri and occupied Euphemie Motel, using it as their operational base without the owner’s permission.
The counsel to the owner of Euphemie Motel, Inemoye Maxwell Brown, Esq., in a letter dated October 9, 2024, confirmed to newsmen in Yenagoa that the Nigerian Police, “as a respectable and responsible establishment, has gracefully implemented the first request as contained therein, within the time frame provided, as the SWAT team vacated our client’s hotel on October 3, 2024.”
However, Brown urged the IGP and senior officials of the Police Force to urgently address the second request in his client’s petition, which is for the payment of N625,000,000.
He explained that the amount covers the period from August 12, 2023, to September 12, 2024, and should be paid within six weeks of receiving the correspondence.
It will be recalled that the hotel owner had informed the IGP and the Chairman of the Police Service Commission that the 50-bedroom hotel, with a lodging fee of N25,000 per night, along with two conference rooms at N100,000 per day, had been occupied by the police team for over 13 months without payment.
The hotel owner’s counsel further stated, “Our client’s business premises and facilities are now almost in complete ruin, and a full renovation is necessary. It is imperative to restore their facilities and resume normal business operations.
“We therefore call on the Police IG to use his good office to direct your men and officers, who had forcefully moved into and occupied our client’s hotel in Opu Nembe from August 12, 2023, to vacate immediately, within six weeks of receiving this correspondence.
“Additionally, the sum of N625,000,000, covering the period from August 12, 2023, to September 12, 2024, should be paid within six weeks of receiving the correspondence.”
