The Inspector General of Police (IGP) Olatunji Disu has reportedly removed Adebowale Lawal as Commissioner of Police in Ondo State.
Lawal was reportedly replaced by Senior Police Officer Ohagwu Felix Ndukwe as the new Commissioner of Police in Ondo State.
Police sources at Force Headquarters in Abuja told Sahara Reporters that Afolabi’s removal was also linked to his decision to grant an audience to human rights activist Omoyele Sowore and other protesters who visited the state police headquarters to report the assault on June 12 protesters in Akure.
The aforementioned publication learnt that an exclusive report exposing allegations by Lawal’s subordinates, that he demanded a monthly levy of ₦2 million from them, was the final nail in his coffin.
Multiple sources within the Ondo State Police Command revealed that the commissioner had created a system of compulsory remittances running into millions of naira every month. Some officers claimed the scheme had already contributed to the death of a senior officer.
In September 2025, it was reported that Lawal had come under fire over the alleged practice, which reportedly placed immense financial and psychological pressure on police officers across the command.
One source disclosed that Lawal had placed heavy financial demands on his subordinates, reportedly “requiring remittances running as high as one to two million naira monthly.”
The source further explained that the excessive financial obligations had dire consequences on officers tasked with meeting the demands.
Another senior police source corroborated the allegations, stressing that the pressure on officers had claimed a tragic victim.
It was revealed that CSP Nimrod Anaka, the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Kajola Police Station in Odigbo Local Government Area, died from high blood pressure allegedly aggravated by the incessant financial demands placed on officers.
His death reportedly sparked quiet outrage within the Ondo State Police Command. However, many officers were reluctant to go public with their grievances, fearing reprisals from superiors.
In March, a group of clerics in Ondo accused the state police command, including then-Commissioner Lawal, of extorting ₦2 million from them.
The pastors identified were Olarewaju Fadahunsi, Gbadura Marvellous, Arijesulola Kayode, and two others named Tijani and Kolade.
According to findings, the pastors were arrested on February 11, 2026, at Saint Paul Anglican Church in Odode-Idanre by a police team said to be directly under CP Lawal and led by Inspector Sunday Aluko.
One of the pastors said that they were treated like criminals under the commissioner’s supervision. The clerics further alleged that they were later brought before CP Adebowale, who threatened to “secretly kill them if they refused to cooperate with his men.”