Inspector-General of Police, Disu Appoints DCP Anthony Okon Placid as Force Public Relations Officer

The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, has approved the appointment of Anthony Okon Placid as the new Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO) of the Nigeria Police Force.

Placid, a Deputy Commissioner of Police, replaces Benjamin Hundeyin, who had served as the acting Force Public Relations Officer at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.

According to a statement issued on Sunday by Hundeyin, the new police spokesman is a seasoned officer with extensive experience in administration, operations, intelligence, training and international peacekeeping.

Born on December 2, 1970, in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Placid hails from Mbiokporo Nsit in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area of the state.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography and Regional Planning from the University of Uyo and a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the University of Jos. He also studied law at the National Open University of Nigeria.

Placid joined the Nigeria Police Force as a Cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police at the Nigeria Police Academy in 1996 and was commissioned in August 1998.

Over the years, he has attended several professional and international training programmes, including United Nations Peace Operations Specialised Training and the UNITAR Senior Leadership and Peacebuilding Course in Kenya.

The new police spokesperson has served in several strategic capacities within and outside Nigeria. His previous roles include Police Public Relations Officer in Adamawa State, PPRO at the Police Staff College Jos, Chief of Training for the African Union Mission in Sudan, and Head of Training and Development at the United Nations Mission in Darfur.

He has also served as Divisional Police Officer in several locations including Calabar, Bakassi, Uruan and Gembu, as well as Officer-in-Charge of the Anti-Robbery Unit in Kaduna State.

Other positions he held include Assistant Commissioner of Police (Operations) in Akwa Ibom and Kogi states, Assistant Commissioner of Police in the Intelligence Department in Abia State, and Deputy in charge of Administration and Finance at Zone 3 Headquarters, Yola.

Placid is a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and has served as a Commonwealth Human Rights trainer as well as an International Committee of the Red Cross trainer on International Humanitarian Law.

He is also a graduate of the Senior Executive Course 47 of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, where he was inducted as a Member of the National Institute (mni) in December 2025.

The new Force spokesman is married with children and enjoys sports and music in his spare time.