Reservists ‘assist’ police

By SYLVESTER WEMURU
POLICE reservists and auxiliary policemen are not required to work daily shifts such as the regular policemen.
Officer-in-charge of Internal Investigation Unit (IIU) Acting Supt Charles Winuan said the majority of police brutality cases in the country involved reservists and auxiliary policemen.
“There are also police impersonators who are giving the force a bad image and the public must be careful when they are stopped by policemen in odd locations and odd hours,” he said.
Reservists only assist the regular policemen when they are asked to assist and the auxiliary policemen help village leaders and rural police station commanders in their respective communities.
Winuan said when public complaints were lodged against policemen, “the identity of the policemen must be presented as evidence for investigation to be conducted”.
“Pictorial evidence are good. So, I am encouraging the public to make use of their phone cameras and cameras to take pictures of the policemen and bring it with them when they want to lay formal complaints. This will make it easy for IIU investigators to identify the policemen and deal with them accordingly.
He addressed a group of bus and truck drivers who fronted the IIU headquarters in Koki yesterday. Winuan told the drivers, crew and vehicle owners to also report policemen who demanded money instead of arresting and charging them with offences.
He said there were many policemen and impersonators wearing police uniform.
“One way of identifying them is to get the vehicle plate number that they are using.”