We still have a long way to go in this country regarding police brutality. This happened on 16th to 17th of June, 2023.

This happened in Ado-Ekiti.

Admin, please, push to front page

This is an account of the events that unfolded yesterday night.

We received a call from a friend at approximately 9pm, informing us of their arrest for an alleged assault on a civilian and urgently requesting our presence at the police station that same night.

We promptly proceeded to the station, where we encountered several police officers stationed at the entrance. They inquired about the purpose of our visit, and we explained that we were there to support our arrested friend. Upon our explanation, we were granted access to the premises.

Upon reaching the designated area, we encountered a group of officers, and a female officer assumed responsibility for assisting us. She informed us that the suspect was unavailable for visitation at that particular time and advised us to return the following day. Despite our attempts to persuade her otherwise, she remained steadfast in her decision. Consequently, three of us departed and waited outside, while one individual who had initially accompanied us continued to engage in conversation with the female officer. Unfortunately, all his efforts to persuade her were futile.

At that point, I noticed a worrisome escalation in the woman's demeanor, suggesting that she intended to exacerbate the situation. Sensing trouble, I stepped aside and retrieved my phone. As soon as the police officers noticed that I had my phone out, they swiftly approached and confiscated it, subsequently grabbing me by my clothing and forcibly dragging me back into the police station alongside my friend.

Inside the station, the woman locked the door and immediately began accusing us of attacking the officers present. Another officer arrived, and without giving us an opportunity to explain our side of the story, he resorted to physical violence, repeatedly slapping us and demanding that we sit on the floor.
The officer then escorted us to his office, where we had a brief conversation with him about the purpose of our visit. The DPO came, and he inquired about the individual who had taken out their phone during the intense argument, and I acknowledged that it was me. Consequently, he instructed one of the officers to detain me while allowing my friends to leave. These events transpired within the confines of the police station.

The officer led me to the counter, with the DPO (Divisional Police Officer) accompanying us. Upon reaching the counter, my slippers were confiscated. While waiting there, before being taken to the holding cell, the female officer levied an accusation against me, claiming that I had assaulted her by pushing her. I vehemently denied the allegation, emphasizing that such an incident never occurred. During the argument, she had been holding onto my friend's clothing, while a male officer had a grip on mine because I had taken out my phone.

This denial seemed to anger the DPO, who deemed my speech aggressive and labeled me as stubborn. He threatened to teach me a lesson and asserted that I would be taken to court the following day. Subsequently, I was placed in custody. Shortly after being locked up, I was escorted out again to provide a statement. I recounted the events that transpired prior to being returned to the cell.

The following day, an officer approached me while I was still in the cell and informed me that the DPO had decided to release me on the condition that I offer an apology. I firmly and unequivocally expressed to the officer that the DPO was fully aware of the events that transpired the previous night and that my confinement was merely a result of my refusal to comply. I made it clear that I was not prepared to apologize to the DPO for something I did not do, as it would be an infringement upon my rights.

The officer realized that I was not willing to comply with the demand. Despite this, the DPO ordered my release. If I had committed a grave offense, I would have been willing to apologize, but I firmly believed that my rights had been violated, and I refused to apologize for something I did not perpetrate.

Later on, another officer arrived to effect my release and escorted me upstairs. This officer informed me that the DPO had instructed him to prepare my case file as I would be taken to court. I was taken aback by this development, as I questioned the basis for such action. What charges would be brought against me? From where did these accusations arise? The officer responsible for preparing the case file was fully aware of the actual events that took place, yet he had to adhere to the instructions given to him.

Subsequently, another officer entered the scene and proceeded to read both my statement from the previous night and the statement provided by the female officer involved in the incident. This officer expressed a refusal to accept the contents of my statement, citing that I had included too much detail. To my astonishment, he presented a different statement and instructed me to complete it according to his guidance.

It became evident to me that he intended for me to incriminate myself by accepting responsibility for assaulting the police officer. When he began posing questions and directing me on what to write, I firmly stated that everything that had transpired had already been documented in my initial statement, and that was the only account I would repeat. This response infuriated him, and he accused me of being stubborn, threatening that they would take punitive action against me.

Meanwhile, my friends had arrived at the station and were working towards resolving the situation. They sought an audience with the DPO, engaging in conversation to explain the circumstances. The DPO instructed them to retrieve me, and they proceeded to the office where I was writing the statement. They accompanied me to the DPO's office, where the female police officer was also present.

The DPO requested that the woman provide an account of what had transpired the previous night. Unfortunately, she proceeded to fabricate numerous falsehoods in front of my friends, taking advantage of their intervention in the matter. She accused me of assaulting her; and my friends, despite recognizing the untruthfulness of her claims, were unable to intervene as their primary objective was to secure my release.


The individual accused me of assault, and my friends, who were present, had to prioritize my removal from the situation. Consequently, despite any claims made by the accuser, I acknowledge my involvement in the alleged incident. However, I was only afforded a brief opportunity to speak before being instructed to remain silent.

This led to a situation where everyone, including myself, showed deference (prostrate) to the District Police Officer (DPO), who subsequently ordered my release.

Before my release, I was required to sign a document indicating my understanding, and a friend who accompanied me was also asked to sign a similar undertaking. Reluctantly, I was compelled to accept responsibility for assaulting a police officer in uniform while they were on duty. My mugshots were taken. Although I was disinclined to accept this, I recognized that declining or asserting my rights would likely result in continued detention.

Before leaving, there were extensive discussions among the on-duty police officers regarding the incident. Some even directly stated to me that I had assaulted a police officer. However, my friends strongly advised me against defending myself, as they feared the repercussions of challenging the prevailing narrative.

It was apparent that these officers had formed their opinions solely based on the statement provided by the accuser, without expressing any interest in hearing my side of the story. Interestingly, the officers who were present during the incident and were aware of my innocence chose to remain silent, abstaining from participating in the discussions.

Idel Kabir is next week

The cost of rams are extremely expensive even here in the north

Nufsaid

Where you born and raised in Nigeria?

Abi you just returned from UK?


Na normal thing for here o!


Hmm, You never see where thief dey carry him victim go police station with confidence!

I hate Police Stations and Hospitals... I don't just go there

WTF!

My condolences to the op. Many of us has had police brutality in so many forms, I have had 2 bad experiences of police brutality one in which I was unjustly arrested and I was driven from 6:30am till around 10am with my people looking for me for 3hrs because they knew the kind of person I am.

I would have loved action to be taken on that police station try and escalate the issue on twitter you could probably get a redress also tag FIJ they are very good @ investigating such cases but your issue is actually accepting you assaulted the officer that can work against you.

Nigerian police needs to total rehabilitation. Of course I don't expect the drug lord to know this because he himself needs rehabilitation. Obi will ensure sanity is restored in the Nigerian police force the moment he has been declared president. The election tribunal urgently needs to do the needful ASAP.

I fear for who no fear Nigerian Police.

They are masters of their craft.

"Hey, come here, who are you and where do you think you're coming from at this time of the night?"

Told them i was coming from my girlfriend’s, after giving them my name and showing them ids.

Besides, it was just around nine in the evening.

"Call that girlfriend of yours to come here now."

I was confused, has it become a crime to visit a girl at nine in the evening?

I can't officer, she can't come here.

Is there a problem?

"So you didn't hear that an officer was killed in the city last week?"

Well, if you keep being this unprofessional it won't take long before you garner enough enemies to do you harm sooner than later, but i was polite.

Oh, that's sad, I'm so sorry, what terrible news.

The rude one cut me short immediately, "you have not told us why you're walking at this part of the town at this time."

He didn't speak much English, about all he could say is "get into the van now."

Is there a curfew in the city, officer? because i didn't hear such.

Besides, this is the centre of the town.

"Enter the van, immediately before i rough handle you."

I stood my ground, thanks to the two or four bottles I had gulped earlier, they boost my confidence a little beyond my threshold.

Rough handle me, what's my offence? I go nowhere, officer.

The cool one came back, to ask the most bizarre of questions, "who is your local government chairman."

I couldn't help but laugh, i don't know officer, and that's God's truth even to this day.

"You see, he doesn't even know the name of his local government chairman," they were trying to make a fool of me, but there is something they obviously didn't know about me, i was already a certified idiot before then.

They were trying all their best to see me slip so they could pin something on me and milk me dry.

I don't officers, i have no need to.

Does the chairman know my name? I asked.

Why should i be walking about memorizing some politician name?

A man that was elected to serve me but ended up being the boss and making life more difficult for me.

I'm too busy fending for myself and my family, sorry, i don't know the man.

They looked at me like i was crazy. Go, go go, get out of here.

I was a bad market for them.

In wasting time with me they were missing out on other clients.

If they had tried anything, I sure would have come on them like rain and fight them with storms and with thunder, in my sleep, of course.

Tips:

Don't speak pidgin with Nigerian police, you would have succeeded in bringing yourself to their level.

Appear smarter, better than them in every way.

Ask them questions, they mostly can't answer and might let you go to avoid trouble.

Last but most important, don't show them fear.

Sweet angel, I'm home now. No, it's okay, i should be thanking you instead. Bye, kisses

.

Candidlady:
Idel Kabir is next week
The cost of rams are extremely expensive even here in the north
Nufsaid

Are you a muslim

Lutherblaq:


Are you a muslim

Do Ihave to be a Muslim to know bout their festive periods

Candidlady:
Idel Kabir is next week

The cost of rams are extremely expensive even here in the north

Nufsaid

Of what use is this piece of information to this thread

Nigeria’s police are notorious for bribery. I’m sure I’ve noted in an old answer related to Nigeria that we used to frequently get stopped on the road to get our “papers and fire extinguisher checked” only to be ultimately asked for money. This used to happen especially on holidays. It is a bad quality of the police force but when you look at it from another angle, you can’t blame the officers because they are severely underpaid in Nigeria.

Most times they really don’t extort you for it and instead ask rather kindly or they kind of act nice and that implies that they want some money. But it’s still kind of all bribery in the end.

I have livei in Nigeria long enough to witness it but this year, some unit of the police called the SARS has made headlines and is infamous for their unjustified halting of citizens and arrest, and often times being violent and needless to say they demand bribes, in this case extorting people for bribes (rather than “asking rather kindly” as I mentioned above). I do not know much about them but I do know that many people hate them. Many have complained of SARS officials violating their rights, and there have been campaigns for the government to put an end to this unit.

Other than that, from my experience I wouldn’t say Nigeria’s police force is the best when it comes to responding to emergencies. Many years ago, our church was robbed and the police arrived 120 minutes after being called. The station was 5 minutes away on a road that never has any traffic, and this was at night. Granted they did manage to catch some of the robbers, and this was many years ago so maybe things have changed. Things were always pretty peaceful in Ibadan during my last few years there so I thankfully never had to experience any incident that would let me know how well the police respond to crimes.

Cloudflare:
Whoever read that long epistle should summarize abeg

Sorry bro

Only geniuses can comprehend

Anything wey go carry me enter police station, I dey avoid am
The moment you enter station, wether you're guilty or not, you will experience all sort of exploitation, abuse, and harassment.

Nigerian Police system is faulty from head to tail, from recruitment to retirement. They are the most dishonest and wicked people empowered by the state to carry gun. Armed robbers are sometimes more humane and considerate than them. That is why they never do well after leaving the service and the children they trained with the ill-gotten money never amount to anything good in life.

Meerahbel:
.

Why should you quote such a long epistle again?

Nigerian Police should be eradicated from this country For real.

If I begin to remember what those guys showed me on the road.... God no go let me craze

Candidlady:


Do Ihave to be a Muslim to know bout their festive periods

No, but you sound so happy

They had no intentions of making good their threat of taking you to court. In fact, the police don't like to go to court for cases like this because every court case is documented and they will have to give account to their superiors how they are utilizing legal resources.

Next time be aware you can't be convicted merely on an officer's word against yours. See how they said your statement contained too much detail? That detail is what would be missing in their fabrications against you and a good lawyer could make a strong case for you.

As an adult in Nigeria, it's good to have a lawyer's number in your contacts, even if it is a pro bono one.

Police is your friend
Bail is free

No sakamaje words pass those 2

Police can never and will never be my friend

I keep saying this, we are all products of our environment.

Those police officers are Nigerians, along with the thieving Politicians, the Cultists, fraudsters and many other forms of corrupt and irresponsible role players in our society.

They are not foreigners neither did they fall from space.

Charity begins at home.

If you want a civil, cultured and properly run society then start from your family, your homes, your friendships, your neighbourhoods, schools, offices, business places, campaigns, voting reasons, etc

Shun all vices, stand against corruption, unfair advantage, bigotry, etc, and espouse kindness, empathy, dignity, principles, hardwork and respect culture in your homes & outwards.

I bet you all these kind of stories will be phased out gradually and the society will metamorphose into the progressive, civilised one we all want.

Till then, it is what it is.

op said the officer that accused him is a female.

I always said it. I fear who no fear women

Aside the hate on NPF, nobody read where the OP stated that the Police Officer told him to go and come back the next day because it's late and she can't have access to the suspect but other op's friends left and he continued to disturb the police officers on duty to prove he knows his right.
This is Nigeria and not civilized nation
Everything is wrong down here
We should know how to apply wisdom in any thing we do

Cloudflare:
Whoever read that long epistle should summarize abeg

Summary: Nigerian police is a criminal organization

This is why they can never defend themselves properly when gunmen come for them.

Police is the worst enemy you will ever encounter.

News flash, anytime u are dealing with law enforcers in 9ja, take a camera. Even b4 any interactions occur, begin 2 record at a far distance.

Food for thought - Police is never your friend.


Check my siggy!

nurey:
My condolences to the op. Many of us has had police brutality in so many forms, I have had 2 bad experiences of police brutality one in which I was unjustly arrested and I was driven from 6:30am till around 10am with my people looking for me for 3hrs because they knew the kind of person I am.

I would have loved action to be taken on that police station try and escalate the issue on twitter you could probably get a redress also tag FIJ they are very good @ investigating such cases but your issue is actually accepting you assaulted the officer that can work against you.

Sorry about what happened to you. Personally, I know what the police are capable of hence I am not surprised at the barbarism of the police. I don't pity any policeman/woman when fate deals with them.

Brotherly to be so sincere to you, after reading the whole write up I couldn't really see much sense from ur side. You should have known Nigeria police better.
You went to see ur friend in the police station and the officer in charge told u and ur friends that ur request won't be possible at that time and you persuaded and she refused, at that point you and ur friends should have turned back without further dragging. You brought out ur phone this act aroused the officer thoughts that u wanted to record the incident.

Next time u are dealing with Nigerian police officers try use ur senses make una no dae come bore us with long episode of stories.

Nigerian police are ur enemies
Be very careful when dealing with them