Police arrest driver over assault on VIO officer in Plateau

The Plateau State Police Command has arrested a 45-year-old driver, Kabiru Kudi, over alleged assault and obstruction of Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO) officers in Jos.

The arrest was disclosed in a statement issued on Tuesday night by the Police Public Relations Officer of the Plateau State Command, SP Alfred Alabo.

According to the statement, the command arrested Kudi, from Shendam Local Government Area, in connection with alleged criminal conspiracy, assault and obstruction of public servants in the discharge of their official duties.

The police said the arrest followed a petition received from the Plateau State Ministry of Transportation concerning an incident involving officers of the Vehicle Inspection Office, also known as the Vehicle Inspection Section.

“According to the report, on 17th September 2026, at about 3:30pm, officers of the Vehicle Inspection Office were performing their lawful duties along Constitution Hill, Jos North Local Government Area, when they flagged down an ash-coloured Sharon vehicle with registration number SHD980YU. The driver refused to stop and instead attempted to evade the officers at high speed, hitting one of them on the arm and causing a fracture,” the statement said.

“The driver subsequently parked his vehicle in the middle of the road, alighted, and engaged the officers in a physical confrontation,” the police added.

The command further disclosed that the suspect mobilised a group of hoodlums who attacked the officers and damaged their operational vehicle.

“Furthermore, the suspect mobilised a group of hoodlums who attacked the officers and damaged their operational vehicle, thereby escalating the incident and obstructing the officers in the lawful performance of their duties,” the statement said.

The police said detectives commenced an investigation upon receipt of the complaint and, with the assistance of community members, arrested the suspect in Shendam Local Government Area before handing him over to the police for investigation.

Reacting to the incident, the Commissioner of Police, Plateau State Command, CP Ayodeji Faniyan, condemned acts of violence against law enforcement officers carrying out their lawful duties.

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According to the statement, Faniyan reiterated that no individual or group had the right to obstruct, assault, threaten or attack public servants in the discharge of their official duties.

“The Command advises members of the public to remain law-abiding, comply with lawful instructions from law enforcement officers, and seek redress through appropriate legal channels whenever they feel aggrieved. Any disagreement with an enforcement action must not be used as a justification for violence, mob action, or the destruction of government property,” the statement added.

The command also warned against mobilising hoodlums or taking the law into one’s hands, noting that such conduct could attract serious legal consequences.

The police said the suspect had been charged to court for prosecution.

Our correspondent reports that the Plateau State Government suspended all field operations and checkpoints by the Vehicle Inspection Office on September 21, 2026.

The suspension followed recurring violent confrontations and physical assaults on VIO personnel by motorists and transport operators in Jos and other parts of the state.

The Commissioner for Transport, Hon. Davou Jatau, had condemned the attacks and called on transport unions to produce members involved in the violence.

The Ministry of Transport also initiated stakeholder engagements, including meetings with the National Union of Road Transport Workers, tricycle operators’ associations and the Nigerian Union of Journalists, to review inspection methods, reorient officers, establish a motorist complaint unit and enforce statutory rules, including commercial driving age limits.

However, the VIO has yet to resume operations following the engagements.