Akin Fakorede: A fearless forensic crime Investigator

By Emeka Amaefula

The probe into the rising crime rate in Nigeria which is getting more complex each day requires a well-trained crime-bursting law enforcement specialist like the Ekiti State-born Deputy Commissioner of Police, DCP Akin Victor Fakorede.

This University of Calabar, Cross River State trained Lawyer who was born on 22nd of August, 1971 in Ekiti East Local Government Area of Ekiti state is a dependable police officer whose exploits in the Nigeria Police Force have been described as unique and impeccable since he joined the Force in 1992 as a Cadet after graduating from the Nigerian Police Academy Wudil, Kano in Kano State where he received training and commissioning as a police officer.

Prior to this, he had basic educational training with First School Leaving Certificate in 1982 and he attended Command Children School Jaji, Kaduna.

He had his West African School Certificate Examination Ordinary Level in 1987 from Nigeria Military School Zaria, Kaduna State.

Akin Victor Fakorede attended the prestigious University of Calabar where he obtained a Law Degree LL. B in 2004 and went further to obtain a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management from the same university in 2006. In 2007 he obtained Barrister-At-Law (BL) Certificate from the Nigerian Advance Legal Education, Nigerian Law School Abuja.

Fakorede, specializing in crime bursting trained at the Police Detective College Enugu with speciality in Advance Detective Course in 1996. Thereafter, he attended United Nations Senior Management Course in Mogadishu Somalia in 2013 and trained at the Humanitarian and Peace Support School, Nairobi, Kenya in 2014.

The noble Police Officer in 2017 was at National Security Management Course-Galilee Institute located in Tel Aviv, Israel. The same year, he went to Jesus College-Cambridge University, United Kingdom where he bagged a Certificate in Forensic Investigation. He had earlier attended Police College Kaduna Advance Detective Course in 2010.

His work experiences began with his posting as Divisional Crime Officer at Ivo Police Division in Ebonyi State from 1992 to 2000. He was an officer in charge of the Commissioner of Police Monitoring Unit, Calabar from 2001 to 2002.

Subsequently, he was the Officer In Charge of Security and Crime Intelligence at Cross River State Command from 2003 to 2006.

Being a Police officer who is hard working and dedicated to his duties he got engaged with International Police work as he became Chief of the United Nations Police Operation in Darfur in Sudan from 2007 to 2009 where earned several awards and Medals for his exemplary leadership qualities and dedication to Police duties while in that UN-Police Operation as head of Nigeria’s Contingent Team.

Upon his return from Interpol service, he was posted as Divisional Police Officer at Borokiri Police Division, Port Harcourt, Rivers State in 2010 at a time Rivers State was experiencing serious security infractions occasioned by youth restiveness in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Here he displayed his exploits in international Policing in troubled Somalia and Sudan thus bringing to an end security breaches in troubled areas of Waterfronts of the Rivers State and its environs. In 2011 he was posted as the Divisional Police Officer, DPO at Rumuepirikom Divisional Headquarters in Port Harcourt. In 2012, he became Head of Legal Department of State Criminal Investigative Division-SCID, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

He was Divisional Police Officer, DPO of PINDA Division Gombe State in 2013 from where he was deployed to be Special Adviser on National Security to the Inspector General of Somalia National Government SNG Mogadishu from 2014 to 2015. It was this special assignment that earned him a posting to become Commander of Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad-SARS at Rivers State from 2016 to 2019 where his stallion performance brought several accolades that distinguished him from all as his humanitarian training programme gained ground on his approach to compliance to rule of observance to fundamental human rights of citizens who were suspects and accused persons in alleged crimes.

He brought sanity to Rivers so much that his name became a household name as he stopped many criminals as most of the daring ones fled the state. Those apprehended by his squad were diligently prosecuted and convicted at Federal High Courts of Port Harcourt Judicial Division.

After the dissolution of SARS by the Federal Government, Akin Victor Fakorede was posted to Brini-Gwari Area Command, Kaduna State where he served from 2019 to 2021.

He, thereafter, got elevated to Assistant Commissioner of Police, Zonal Investigation and Intelligence Zone 13, Ukpo, Anambra state from 2021 to 2023.

He currently serves as Deputy Commissioner of Police at the Federal Headquarters Abuja.

DCP Akin Victor Fakorede is married with children to Dr. (Mrs.) Oluwaseun Fakorede. His hobbies include playing golf, swimming, biking and reading.

Emeka Amaefula is a Port Harcourt-based Journalist.