Nigeria’s First Private Detective Training Institute Debuts in Imo, Sets Nationwide Security Reform in Motion

ThankGod Emeh…

Nigeria’s security architecture has received a major boost with the launch of the country’s first Private Detective Training Institute in Imo State with ongoing trainings across the 36 states of the Federation to complement the efforts of conventional law enforcement agencies.

The institute, established in collaboration with the Detective Training Initiative, USA, was founded by two-time Nigerian presidential aspirant and FBI/KGB-trained detective, Sam Nwanti, popularly known as Sam Wantings across the world, is designed to reshape intelligence gathering, witness management and community-based investigations nationwide to support a more holistic and intelligence-driven policing system across the country.

True to its mission and vision, the institute has already produced a crop of well-trained private detectives whose professional interventions are helping to prevent and expose criminal activities within their communities by uncovering facts behind the scenes.

During a familiarisation visit to the Imo State Police Command on January 12, 2026, the Commissioner of Police, represented by the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of State Criminal Investigations Department, DCP Abuja O. Abuja, described the emergence of the institute as a welcome development.

The Deputy Commissioner, who was in the company of other senior officers of the Investigation Department, charged the leadership and graduates of the institute to discharge their duties professionally and patriotically in order to sanitise and accelerate the nation’s justice system.

The police leadership also commended the founder, Detective Sam Nwanti (Sam Wantings), for his foresight and insights, urging him to further strengthen and integrate the institution so that its name would be indelibly stamped in Nigeria’s security history.

He further called for the creation of a clear legal framework to guide the operations of private detectives in Nigeria in line with international best practices, while assuring the institute of the command’s readiness to collaborate with it across all fronts.

Officers of the command equally encouraged the newly commissioned detectives to remain vigilant and focused in the pursuit of truth and justice in all their engagements.

In his remarks, the founder of the institute, Detective Sam Nwanti, disclosed the foundational background of the organisation, citing provisions of the 2020 Amended Police Act, Section 4, Subsection 1, as part of its enabling framework as he called for more front-burner legislation to strengthen and protect the operations of private detectives in the course of their duties.

Detective Nwanti stressed that the institute seeks to complement the safeguarding efforts of the Nigeria Police and other security agencies through its well-structured training and retraining programmes for students and graduates.

He also expressed readiness to collaborate with security agencies within Imo State and across the nation to strengthen intelligence gathering, investigations and crime prevention.

The newly commissioned detectives, in separate remarks, expressed their readiness to bring to bear their security, investigation and conflict-resolution expertise in the discharge of their duties, pledging to uphold professionalism, integrity and collaboration with law enforcement agencies in the fight against crime and injustice across their communities.

The establishment of Nigeria’s first Private Detective Training Institute in Imo is being hailed as a game-changer in the country’s security landscape. By producing professional detectives equipped with modern investigative and conflict-resolution skills, the institute not only strengthens community-based security but also fosters a culture of accountability, intelligence-led policing, and collaboration between citizens and law enforcement agencies nationwide. Its founders and graduates are set to play a crucial role in advancing justice, reducing crime, and building public trust in the country’s security architecture.

For More Enquiries, reach out to the Institute’s leadership on 08168214491 or
09024248615.