IGP Egbetokun Picks DCP Hope Okereke to Lead Enugu SCID

Segun Atanda/

The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, has deployed Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Hope Isiani Okereke to the Enugu State Police Command as the Deputy Commissioner in charge of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID).

NewsmakersNG learnt that DCP Okereke has resumed duty and assumed full operational and supervisory responsibility for criminal investigations within the Command.

The deployment, according to the Nigeria Police Force, reflects the confidence of the leadership of the Force in her professional competence, investigative depth, administrative capacity, and proven commitment to discipline, integrity and due-process policing.

DCP Okereke is a career police officer with over two decades of service, spanning operational, investigative, intelligence and administrative assignments.

She is a graduate of the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Linguistics and Communication Studies. She enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force on August 15, 2002, and graduated from the Police Academy, Wudil, Kano State, in 2004.

Following graduation from the Police Academy, her early postings included serving as Divisional Traffic Officer in Borno State Command (2004), and working at the State Intelligence Bureau (SIB), now State Intelligence Department (SID), between 2005 and 2006.

She also served as Divisional Crime Officer II (DCO II) at the Olu-Obasanjo Police Station, Rivers State, from 2007 to 2009, where she gained extensive experience in frontline crime investigations and operational coordination.

Her subsequent operational leadership appointments include serving as Women Unit Commander at the 56 Police Mobile Force, Ogoni, Rivers State (2009–2012), and later as Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) at Mini-Okoro Police Station (2012–2013).

Okereke was later appointed Divisional Police Officer (DPO) at the Sani Abacha Division (2013–2014), and later served as DPO at the Olu-Obasanjo Divisional Headquarters (2014–2015), where she received the Award for Most Outstanding Performing DPO. She also served as DPO, Abuloma Division (2015–2016) and later Okporo Division (2016–2017), all in Rivers State.

Upon her transfer to Enugu State Command in 2017, she was appointed Administrative Officer at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Enugu, and later served as DPO, Trans-Ekulu Division (2018).
She further held the positions of DPO, A.I. Road Division (2019) and DPO, New Haven Division (2020), where she was credited with strengthening operational discipline and community-based policing.

Following her promotion to the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) in 2020, she was deployed to Zone 9 Headquarters, Umuahia, Abia State, as ACP Operations, where she reportedly demonstrated effective inter-divisional coordination and adherence to Force investigative standards.

In 2022, she returned to the Enugu State Command as ACP Administration, overseeing personnel administration, discipline, postings and internal control mechanisms.

With her promotion to the rank of Deputy Commissioner of Police, the IGP deployed her to head the SCID, Enugu State Command, where she will provide oversight for the investigation of serious and capital offences, supervise evidential and prosecutorial standards, and ensure ethical compliance.

The Force said DCP Okereke “is professionally recognised for firm supervisory control, strict adherence to evidence-led investigative doctrine, and strong emphasis on integrity, documentation and accountability”.

The statement added that her deployment underscores the Nigeria Police Force’s commitment to professionalism, lawful investigation and institutional credibility in criminal justice administration, stressing that under her leadership, investigations in Enugu will be conducted strictly in accordance with the law, with integrity, professionalism and respect for human rights.