EndSARS At Six: Has Anything Changed?

Six years after thousands of Nigerians took to the streets demanding an end to police brutality, allegations of torture, extortion, unlawful arrests and extrajudicial killings continue to test the promise of reform in the Nigeria Police Force.

The #EndSARS protests of October 2020 were driven by years of complaints against the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), whose operatives were accused of arbitrary arrests, torture, extortion and killings. What began as a demand to disband the unit grew into a nationwide movement for police accountability, respect for human rights and fundamental changes in law enforcement.

The Federal Government subsequently disbanded SARS and introduced measures intended to improve policing, including the Police Act 2020, new complaint-handling mechanisms and further training for officers.

Yet, as Nigeria marks six years since the protests, incidents documented across the country continue to raise questions about whether the reforms have fundamentally changed how some police officers exercise their powers.

Recent cases in Imo, Delta and Cross River states, alongside allegations of excessive force during demonstrations, have renewed concerns about accountability and the protection of citizens in police custody.

For victims and rights advocates, the central question is no longer whether the authorities have announced reforms, but whether Nigerians can see their effects when they encounter the police.

Police and the gun

On July 3, 2021, 25-year-old Jumoke Oyeleke, a saleswoman, was killed during a Yoruba nation rally in Ojota, Lagos State. According to Amnesty International, Oyeleke was displaying her drinks when she was struck by a bullet allegedly fired by a police officer.

Her death occurred less than a year after the EndSARS protests, renewing concerns about the use of lethal force by security operatives during public gatherings. The incident became one of the cases cited by Amnesty International in its documentation of alleged extrajudicial killings after the 2020 protests.

Also, Gafaru Buraimoh, a resident of Happy Land Estate in Ajah, Lagos State, was shot dead in December 2022 during an incident involving police officers.

Reports said a bullet hit Buraimoh during a police operation in the area. His death sparked public outrage, particularly because it occurred less than three weeks before another fatal shooting involving a police officer in the same part of Lagos.

Even Omobolanle Raheem, a pregnant lawyer, was not spared. She was shot dead by a police officer in the Ajah area of Lagos State on December 25, 2022.

Raheem was returning from church with members of her family when the fatal shooting occurred near the Ajah Bridge.

The officer responsible, Drambi Vandi, was subsequently prosecuted for murder. In October 2023, a Lagos High Court sentenced him to death after finding him guilty of killing the lawyer.

On April 5, 2023, was the end of Onyeka Ibe. The man was shot dead in Delta State in an incident that Amnesty International linked to an alleged demand for a N100 bribe by police officers conducting a stop-and-search operation.

According to the human rights organisation, Ibe was killed after allegedly refusing to pay the money.

Seventeen-year-old Abdullahi Tukur Abba died in hospital in Yola, Adamawa State, on August 5, 2023, after allegedly being tortured in police custody.

Amnesty International identified his case in its assessment of police abuses in Nigeria following the EndSARS protests. His death raised concerns about the treatment of suspects in detention, particularly young people, and the need for independent investigations into allegations of torture by law enforcement officers.

Other sad cases

In February 2026, Amnesty International published an investigation report on the activities of Tiger Base, an anti-kidnapping unit of the Imo State Police Command in Owerri, alleging that the unit was involved in extrajudicial killings, torture, prolonged arbitrary detention, extortion and enforced disappearances.

The report, sighted by LEADERSHIP, also described allegations that detainees were held in overcrowded and unsanitary cells, while some suspects were allegedly tortured to extract confessions.

Amnesty International further alleged that arrests were sometimes used to settle personal disputes or extract money from detainees and their families.

The allegations raised concerns about the treatment of suspects in police custody and the effectiveness of safeguards intended to prevent abuse.

In Delta State, another fatal incident brought the question of police use of force into sharp focus. On April 26, 2026, a police officer fatally shot Mene Ogidi in Effurun. Following an internal disciplinary process, the Nigeria Police Force announced that it had recommended the dismissal of the principal officer, Assistant Superintendent of Police Nuhu Usman, and other officers found culpable.

In an April 28 statement, the Force said the disciplinary findings established that the principal officer had acted in gross violation of Force Order 237 and other regulations governing the use of firearms. The Inspector-General of Police approved the recommendations and forwarded them to the Police Service Commission for ratification, after which the affected officers were to be handed over for prosecution.

The police described the incident as unlawful and unprofessional, reiterating that no officer had the right to take a life outside the provisions of the law.

The announcement demonstrated that the Force could initiate disciplinary action in response to a fatal shooting. However, the case also raised questions about how officers are trained to handle encounters involving civilians and whether disciplinary measures are consistently followed by criminal prosecution where warranted.

In Cross River State, a Federal High Court in Calabar awarded N100 million in damages against the police and other respondents over the torture and killing of 22-year-old Onyekachi Mba.

Mba was reportedly beaten and shot by police security personnel at the Government House in Calabar on August 1, 2025, after he insisted on seeing the governor to deliver what he described as a message from God. He later died from injuries sustained during the incident.

The judgment, reported in July 2026, provided a judicial response to the family’s case and raised questions about officers’ use of force in protecting public officials.

Together, the incidents in Imo, Delta and Cross River illustrate the range of allegations and judicial findings that continue to shape the debate over police conduct, from the treatment of suspects in custody to the use of lethal force.

What has changed since 2020?

The police reform process has not stood still.

The Police Act 2020 replaced the Police Act of 1943 and established principles of accountability, transparency, professionalism, respect for human rights and partnership with communities.

The law also provides for Police Complaints Response Units at Force Headquarters and across state commands and the Federal Capital Territory. The units are intended to receive and process complaints involving police misconduct, including extortion, harassment and human rights violations.

In April 2026, the Federal Ministry of Police Affairs announced the launch and handover of the Nigeria Police Regulations (Amendment) 2026. The ministry said the regulations were designed to strengthen accountability, disciplinary procedures, training, recruitment and professional standards.

The Nigeria Police Force has also said it is introducing a revised training curriculum to replace the model used over the previous 28 years.

In July 2026, Force Public Relations Officer Anietie Edem said the police were strengthening the Complaints Response Unit to improve transparency, reduce response times and make it easier to track complaints against officers.

Edem described the unit as the Force’s principal accountability mechanism and said it received complaints about professional misconduct, extortion, harassment and human rights violations.

These initiatives indicate that the authorities have introduced new rules and mechanisms intended to address misconduct. However, the existence of a law, complaint platform or training programme does not, on its own, establish that abuses have declined.

Determining whether police brutality has reduced would require comparable data on complaints, investigations, disciplinary actions, prosecutions and court judgments over several years. Such evidence would help establish whether the reforms have produced measurable improvements in citizens’ experiences.

Other experts’ view

For some legal practitioners, the central problem is the gap between reform policies and officers’ daily conduct.

Nathaniel Ngwu, convener of the Criminal Justice Network of Nigeria, said unlawful arrests, torture, extortion and excessive force remained concerns six years after the #EndSARS protests.

In comments published by The Guardian on October 20, 2026, Ngwu argued that reforms had not been adequately integrated into police operations.

“From the look of things, the reforms have not been integrated into the system and operations. It is only written on paper,” he said.

Ngwu attributed the problem partly to inadequate funding, poor training, corruption and weak accountability. He said some police stations lacked basic operational resources, leaving complainants expected to provide money to facilitate investigations and arrests.

He argued that such practices undermined the independence of investigations and created opportunities for extortion.

The lawyer also called for regular human rights training for officers who interact directly with the public, particularly investigators and personnel responsible for obtaining statements from suspects.

Chris Okeke, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and managing partner at Chris Okeke & Co., also identified weaknesses in the enforcement of existing laws and access to justice.

Okeke said poverty and limited public awareness of legal rights could prevent victims from pursuing remedies for police misconduct. He also raised concerns about the enforcement of court orders against police authorities.

He called for closer scrutiny of police recruitment and greater attention to officers’ temperament, background and professional suitability.

Chuks Nwobi, principal partner at Tower of David Solicitors & Advocates, similarly called for a shift from what he described as a colonial policing mentality towards a service-oriented approach.

“We must move away from a force mentality to a service mentality,” Nwobi said.

He argued that laws against unlawful arrest, torture and extortion would have limited effect without investigations and appropriate sanctions against officers found responsible for misconduct.