The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, has directed Commissioners of Police across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory to treat cases of jungle justice as homicide and ensure the arrest and prosecution of perpetrators of mob action.
IGP Disu gave the directive while speaking on a live television programme on African Independent Television on Wednesday, August 12, 2026.
He said mob action and jungle justice violated victims’ rights to life, dignity and fair hearing, stressing that such acts had no place in a country governed by the rule of law.
The IGP described jungle justice as murder, insisting that it was not justice but a criminal act that violated the fundamental rights of victims.
He said, “Let me state clearly, without ambiguity: jungle justice is murder. It is not justice. It is a crime, and the Nigeria Police Force will treat it as such. It is illegal. Full stop.
“Nigeria operates under the rule of law, not mob rule. No citizen, community or group has the right to try, sentence or execute another person.”
Disu noted that Sections 33, 34 and 36 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, guaranteed every Nigerian, including suspects, the rights to life, dignity and fair hearing.
He said mob action violated these constitutional rights, adding that the law presumed everyone innocent until proven guilty by a court of law.
According to him, innocent people had been killed across the country based on mere suspicion, allegations, rumours and mistaken identities.
He cited the lynching of 16 travellers in Uromi, Edo State, in March 2025 as a painful reminder of the dangers of mob justice.
The IGP said, “Just a rumour, a shout of ‘thief, thief, thief,’ or a viral video, none of that is evidence. None of that gives anybody the right to take another person’s life.”
Disu warned that anyone who assaulted or killed a suspected criminal could face serious criminal charges, adding that those who planned, incited, encouraged or supported mob action could also be held criminally liable.
He further warned that individuals who filmed or circulated videos of mob attacks, mobilised crowds or prevented security personnel from rescuing suspects could also face prosecution.
The IGP subsequently directed all commissioners of police to identify, arrest and prosecute the main actors in mob actions and jungle justice, as well as those who supported, encouraged or played any role in such acts.
“I have directed all Commissioners of Police across the 36 states of Nigeria and the FCT to treat cases of jungle justice as homicide, to identify, arrest and prosecute the main actors in mob action and jungle justice, as well as all those who share, support, or play one part or the other,” he said.
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