The family of Isaac Tamunoibifiri Bristol-Alagbariya, believed to be behind the famous X handle PIDOM NIGERIA, along with Ijaw veterans and stakeholders, have called for his immediate and unconditional release following what they describe as his wrongful and inhumane detention by the Nigeria Police.
The demand was made during a press briefing at the Ernest Ikoli Press Centre in Port Harcourt.
According to the family, Bristol was arrested on August 5 by plainclothes police officers who stormed the Osmosis Hotel, near Paflox filling station on Ada Road, at approximately 1:12 p.m. The officers, arriving in two Lexus RX350 SUVs, broke into his hotel room and took him to an undisclosed location in what the family describes as a “Gestapo-style” operation.
The family stated they were unaware of the arrest until the following day due to the involvement of the hotel manager, whom they accused of colluding with the police. After receiving the information, they immediately began searching for PIDOM at various police stations. Despite denials from police units, they later discovered that he had been held at the Mini-Okoro Police Station’s anti-kidnapping unit on Old Aba Road.
On August 10, 2024, PIDOM was reportedly transferred to the National Cyber Crime Centre (NCCC) in Abuja. The family alleged that he was subjected to severe physical and psychological abuse while in police custody in Port Harcourt, including being handcuffed, beaten, and fed only a single meal per day.
“It is pertinent to state that without trial nor conviction, Isaac was placed in handcuffs, beaten, and tortured with barely one miserly meal per day at the Mini-Okoro anti-kidnapping unit in Port Harcourt. Officers of the anti-kidnapping unit deliberately subjected Isaac to physical and psychological torture, deliberate defamation, libel, and all sorts and manner of dehumanisation and indignities,” they said.
They added that while in Port Harcourt, PIDOM was falsely labelled as a “notorious kidnapper and armed robber” by police officers. During his transfer, this charge was broadcast to passengers and the public at both the Port Harcourt and Abuja airports.
“Dramatically, the charge on Isaac Tamunoibifiri Bristol-Alagbariya had miraculously transmuted to unlawful possession, leakage of classified documents, and cyber-related offences with the change in location. This is a wonder only the Nigeria Police can pull off,” they said.
“It is, however, very worrisome and extremely disturbing that some very bad, corrupt, and morally bereft and unfit elements within the Nigeria Police Force anti-kidnapping unit made no attempt at pretext, in the crass display of their petty banality and moral emptiness, when in less than 18 hours after Isaac’s arrest, some officers were spotted adorning shoes, perfumes, wristwatches, and designer clothes carted away from his hotel room. This is beyond basal and should not be condoned nor accepted within the Nigeria Police Force nor in any public establishment within our country.”
The family and Ijaw stakeholders expressed deep concerns over the blatant violation of Isaac’s rights, pointing out that under Nigerian law, every citizen is presumed innocent until proven guilty. They said Bristol had been treated as guilty, with his rights and dignity violated.
Further violating his rights, West Africa Weekly reported that PIDOM is set to be moved to an underground detention facility run by the Office of the National Security Adviser after being denied access to his family, friends, and legal team.