Canadian Judge Labels Nigerian Police ‘Evil Force’, Denies Ex-Corporal Iyangbe Eriator Permanent Residency

| July 11, 2025 | written By Okafor Joseph
Canadian Court Denies Nigerian Ex-Police Officer Permanent Residency, Describes Nigeria Police Force as ‘Evil and Criminal’

A Canadian federal judge has denied permanent residency to Iyangbe Eriator, a former corporal in the Nigerian Police Force, declaring that his ties to what the court described as an “evil force” made him ineligible to remain in Canada.

Justice Yvan Roy of the Federal Court in Ottawa upheld the decision of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to reject Mr Eriator’s application for permanent residency. Eriator had gone to court to challenge the ruling after IRCC ruled him inadmissible due to his past service in the notoriously corrupt force.

In a strongly worded judgment, Justice Roy accused the Nigerian police of systemic crimes against humanity, stating that the force’s policy effectively requires officers to “rape, maim, torture, enslave, disappear and murder Nigerians.” These actions, he ruled, violate the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

“Mr Eriator, as a member of the Nigeria Police Force, was complicit in these atrocities because he could not have been unaware of the repeated and systematic acts of violence and torture,” the judge stated. “By remaining within the Force and serving in key roles, he made a significant contribution to these crimes.”

Mr Eriator, who illegally entered Canada through the U.S. border in October 2017, argued that he was merely a rank-and-file police officer and never took part in any of the force’s crimes. He joined the Nigerian police voluntarily in June 2009, rose to the rank of corporal, served at election checkpoints — including during Nigeria’s 2015 presidential election — and was deployed to the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Ikeja before leaving the force in 2016.

Justice Roy ruled that Eriator’s defence was not credible given his voluntary service and involvement in units notorious for human rights abuses.

Growing Trend of Asylum Rejections for Nigerian Ex-Police Officers

Mr Eriator’s failed bid for Canadian residency is not an isolated case. In 2021, another Nigerian ex-police officer, Olushola Popoola, who served in SARS, was denied asylum by Judge Sébastien Grammond for similar reasons. Charles Ukoniwe, an ex-officer from the Mobile Police Unit (MOPOL), also failed to secure asylum when Judge Patrick Gleeson ruled that willingly joining the Nigeria Police Force amounts to guilt by association under Canadian law and the UN Refugee Convention — regardless of whether the individual personally committed any human rights abuses.

This pattern reflects Canada’s strict stance that ex-officers from the Nigeria Police Force, especially those connected to disbanded units like SARS and MOPOL, cannot claim refugee protection due to the force’s global reputation for brutality, torture, and extrajudicial killings.