The Commissioner of Police in Bayelsa State, Mr Francis Idu, has confirmed the arrest of a police inspector, identified as Sunday Idey, by operatives of the police special unit, Operation Doo Akpor, in the state, for allegedly brutalising his three children over allegations of witchcraft.

The inspector, who is attached to the Anti-Cultism unit of the Igbogene police unit, reportedly assaulted his children at the weekend over allegations of being members of a witchcraft group Idu said the officer had been arrested and that an investigation into the matter was ongoing.

The incident has sparked outrage across Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, as many residents expressed shock over how the police officer allegedly turned against his own children.

According to eyewitnesses, concerned neighbours who noticed the assault quickly alerted operatives of the Operation Door Akpor, who rescued the brutalised children and took them to a hospital for treatment.

The incident has also drawn strong condemnation from gender rights advocates, including the Chairperson of International Federation of Women Lawyers, Bayelsa chapter, led by Dr. Boma Toney Miebai; the National Association of Women Against Gender Based Violence, led by Dr. Dise Ogbise Goddy Harry and the Chairperson of the Do Foundation, Bayelsa chapter, Dianna Iluma Pius.

The Ministry of Women Affairs and Gender, represented by the Permanent Secretary, also visited the police station and the hospital to obtain firsthand information on the case.