A man who identified himself as a serving police officer with 26 years of service, Newton Isokpehi, has issued a public apology after a video in which he threatened to shoot dead anyone who recorded him while on duty went viral on social media, sparking widespread condemnation and raising fresh concerns about the conduct and welfare of officers within the Nigeria Police Force.
In a follow-up video posted on his TikTok page on Thursday, Isokpehi said his earlier remarks were made out of frustration and did not reflect his true intentions, directly appealing to rights activist Harrison Gwamnishu — who had amplified the original threat — and the Nigerian public for forgiveness.
However, as of the time of reporting, the Nigeria Police Force had not issued an official statement on the matter or confirmed whether Isokpehi is a serving member of the force.
The controversy erupted on Wednesday when a video of Isokpehi issuing graphic threats against members of the public and any superior officer who sanctioned the filming of police on duty went viral across X, Instagram, TikTok, and other social media platforms.
Speaking in Pidgin English in a direct-to-camera format with an ironic “God bless police” text overlay Isokpehi delivered explicit threats that left no room for ambiguity.
“Any day I’m on duty as a police officer, carrying my rifle and doing my job, let somebody come and video me. That oga who gave you people the order to video us, he will go and do your burial. He will bury you. The number of you that I kill, he will be the one to bury all of you,” Isokpehi stated in the original video.
He went further, daring anyone to approach him with a camera while on duty: “If anyone is bold enough, just bring your camera. Watch me properly, bring your camera and come anywhere I am. Come and video me. If you don’t do it right, I will clear everybody down, the whole bus, everybody around. I swear to God, if I don’t do it, let me die.”
The threat extended beyond the person holding the camera to include all bystanders in the vicinity “the whole bus, everybody around” a statement that implied a willingness to commit mass violence over the simple act of being filmed.
Isokpehi also directed explicit threats at any superior officer who had ordered or encouraged members of the public to film police on duty: “That oga, that police officer who gave the order for people to video policemen on duty, oya, I will deal with you all harshly. You will see serious wahala, you will see problem. Problem will destroy your generation.”
During the video, he displayed what he described as bullet wounds on his arm, citing them as evidence of the hardship officers endure. “You think I was born like this? This is a gunshot wound. We are just working. Monkey dey work, baboon dey chop. My whole body is covered with bullet wounds and gunshot scars. Yet I’m still suffering,” he said.
The video, which was shot in an informal setting and appeared to be a spontaneous personal recording rather than an official statement, quickly went viral after being shared widely across social media platforms. It was picked up by rights activists including Harrison Gwamnishu, who amplified it to his large following, and was subsequently covered by major media outlets.
Journalists traced Isokpehi’s TikTok account, bearing the name “Newton isokpehi for life” and the username #actor459, where he had posted several videos of himself in police uniform alongside personal content. The controversial video was subsequently deleted from the page, though the account remained active with earlier posts of him in uniform still visible.
Public reaction was swift and overwhelmingly condemnatory, with users describing the officer’s conduct as dangerous, unprofessional, and emblematic of elements within the force that pose a threat to the civilian population they are supposed to protect.
Approximately 24 hours after the original video sparked outrage, Isokpehi posted a follow-up video on his TikTok page in which he sought to walk back his statements and appeal for forgiveness.
“Please forgive me. If I offended you as a brother, forgive me. That statement was just out of annoyance because of the things that are happening. These things are painful,” Isokpehi said in the apology video.
He insisted that his original threat had been misunderstood, claiming he did not oppose members of the public filming police officers in principle. “Actually, you can video us. You are allowed to video a policeman. But it’s not right for just anybody to come from anywhere and start videoing officers on duty. They have taken it too far,” he clarified.
The distinction he attempted to draw between a general right to film police and what he described as people who “have taken it too far” did little to address the substance of his original threat, in which he promised to kill not only the person filming but also every bystander in the vicinity.
On the specific threat to kill, Isokpehi was categorical in his retraction: “How can I be saying I will kill my own people? We don’t do that. I spoke out of annoyance. That one was just verbal talk.”
The characterisation of a graphic death threat as “just verbal talk” is likely to be received with scepticism by members of the public, particularly given Nigeria’s documented history of extrajudicial killings by police officers including incidents where officers have shot and killed civilians during routine encounters, at checkpoints, and during protests.
Isokpehi, who said he is from Edo State and grew up in a barracks in Kaduna, described himself as a dedicated officer with a proven record of service spanning 26 years, including 12 years in the Mobile Police a unit frequently deployed in high-risk security operations.
In the apology video, he displayed his gunshot injuries in greater detail than he had in the original recording, seeking to convey the physical toll of his years in active service.
“Look at my body, these are all bullets. These are all gunshot wounds. See my chest, bullet has eaten into it. Out of 17 of us, only two survived that operation. We have suffered in this work. So it was out of annoyance. We don’t even like complaining,” Isokpehi said.
The revelation that he was one of only two survivors from a 17-person team if accurate paints a picture of an officer who has endured extreme combat conditions and significant personal trauma, which he cited as the emotional backdrop to his outburst.
Isokpehi appealed directly to Harrison Gwamnishu, the rights activist who had helped make the original video go viral, acknowledging that the clip had travelled further than he anticipated.
“Harrison, forgive me. I beg the whole of Nigeria, please forgive me. This one has reached too far. If you want to know me, come and meet me one-on-one. You will know me personally. I will not run. I will not surrender,” he stated.
He closed with a message of hope, expressing the wish that conditions for police officers would improve under the current Inspector-General of Police. “We have decided that we will die for our fatherland. One day, things will surely get better by the grace of God. One love to the world,” Isokpehi said.
In the original video, he had acknowledged that the current Inspector-General had begun addressing the backlog of unpaid insurance and death benefits owed to officers and their families a rare positive note in an otherwise threatening monologue.
The Nigeria Police Force had not issued an official statement on the matter as of press time, either in response to the original threat or the subsequent apology. It remains unclear whether the force has initiated any internal investigation or disciplinary process against Isokpehi.
The absence of an official response is itself notable. A serving officer publicly threatening to commit mass murder against civilians for the act of filming him on duty and doing so in police uniform on a public social media platform would ordinarily be expected to trigger immediate disciplinary action, including possible arrest, disarmament, and orderly room trial under the Police Act and Regulations.
It also remains unconfirmed whether Isokpehi is indeed a serving member of the Nigeria Police Force. While his TikTok account contained multiple videos of him in police uniform and his account of 26 years of service and Mobile Police deployment appeared detailed and specific, independent verification of his service record has not been possible.
The incident has reignited the national conversation about two interconnected issues: the right of citizens to film police officers on duty, and the chronic welfare challenges facing rank-and-file police personnel in Nigeria.
On the right to film, Nigerian law does not prohibit members of the public from recording police officers performing their duties in public spaces. The right to record public officials, including law enforcement, is widely recognised as an extension of the constitutional rights to freedom of expression and freedom of the press. Multiple police authorities, including previous Inspector-Generals, have acknowledged this right.
However, many officers on the ground resent being filmed, particularly during operations where their conduct may be questionable. The proliferation of smartphones and social media has created an unprecedented level of public scrutiny of police activities scrutiny that has exposed numerous instances of extortion, brutality, and unlawful killings, but which some officers view as harassment or an invasion of their operational space.
On welfare, Isokpehi’s display of multiple gunshot wounds, his account of losing 15 colleagues in a single operation, and his reference to the “monkey dey work, baboon dey chop” proverb suggesting that rank-and-file officers bear the brunt of dangerous operations while senior officials enjoy the benefits reflect long-standing grievances within the lower ranks of the force. These grievances include inadequate compensation, poor equipment, delayed or non-payment of insurance benefits, substandard living conditions in police barracks, and the psychological toll of constant exposure to violence without adequate mental health support.
While these welfare challenges are real and well-documented, they do not justify threats of lethal violence against civilians exercising their lawful rights. The challenge for the police leadership is to address the legitimate welfare concerns that produce the kind of frustration Isokpehi expressed, while simultaneously enforcing strict discipline against officers who threaten the public they are sworn to protect.
Neither Harrison Gwamnishu nor any police authorities had publicly responded to Isokpehi’s apology as at the time of this report.
The post “I Spoke Out Of Annoyance” — Police Officer Newton Isokpehi Apologises Over Viral Threat To “Clear Everybody Down” During Duty Filming appeared first on TheNigeriaLawyer.
