The Nigeria Police Force has officially debunked a viral social media video, labeling it entirely false and highly misleading after claims surfaced that a uniformed officer was caught friendly fraternizing with armed bandits on motorcycles in Katsina State. In an official press statement released on Wednesday by the newly appointed Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Anietie Okokon Edem Iniedu, the police clarified that the armed men captured in the video are absolutely not terrorists or bandits. Instead, the individuals are fully recognized, registered members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN) alongside local community hunters who are actively working in direct partnership with federal security agencies across the Musawa and Matazu Local Government Areas of the state. According to the Force Headquarters, the viral footage merely captured a routine, brief interaction between an on-duty officer and these authorized community volunteers as they were moving together toward a designated operational zone to launch a joint crackdown on regional criminality and boost public safety. CSP Iniedu strongly condemned the deliberate distortion of the facts, warning that the malicious narrative accompanying the video was explicitly engineered by mischief-makers to trigger widespread public anxiety, erode national trust in legitimate security institutions, and actively undermine ongoing tactical operations against criminal gangs in the North-West. The police command heavily cautioned the public to completely disregard the false online reports and rely strictly on official police communication channels for verified security updates. Furthermore, the police hierarchy issued a stern warning to individuals or syndicates specializing in fabricating fake news that threatens public peace, stating that the law will be fully enforced against violators while reiterating the Force’s absolute commitment to collaborating with legal community-based security stakeholders to safeguard lives and property nationwide.
