Student Calls for Justice After Police Br¥talized And Demanded N150,000 From Him For Having Crypto App

A student from Ekiti State University (EKSU) accused the Nigerian Police of extorting N150,000 from him and his friends.

This comes just a few weeks after Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun issued a directive banning police officers nationwide from making arbitrary arrests, har@ssing young people, and checking mobile phones.

The student, who wished to remain anonymous, said that a group of @rmed police officers stopped him and his pals at various checkpoints in Ojota, Lagos.

He was allegedly asked to give N200,000 by one of the officials at one of the checkpoints because he had cryptocurrency apps on his phone.

The student wrote: “I am a student of Ekiti State University, living in Lagos, Nigeria.

At exactly 11:23 AM today, my friend and I were ass@ulted by the Nigerian Police Force at Ojota, Lagos.

I had been hearing and seeing about police br¥tality on social media, but I never prayed for a day like this. We were coming from Alakuko and had ordered an InDrive to Ebutte, Ikorodu. We got stopped at Ojota by the first group of @rmed police.

They asked us to get out of the vehicle and then searched my phone. I opened it for them, knowing fully well that I had nothing incr!m!nating on my phone.

They asked what I do, and I told them I’m a student. They asked me to open my portal, which I did, and showed them my school ID. After not finding anything on my phone, they told us we could go.

On our way, less than one minute after we passed the first group, we encountered another set of armed police—about 10 of them. They stopped us and asked the same questions: what do I do, and am I involved in fr@udulent activities? I respectfully answered that I wasn’t.

They told the Uber driver to leave. I said I hadn’t paid him yet, and then they took my friend and me into their vehicle, a fully tinted Sienna.

I was ass@ulted there, as they insisted we had to go to the station where we would be investigated by their superior. I became frightened, having heard of police brut@lity, but never believing I would be a victim.

They then told me that I had to pay N200,000 if I wanted to go home without being taken to the station.

I was scared and told them that I didn’t have that amount because I’m a student. They then took me to a POS merchant and ordered that I send N150,000 to the POS merchant.

I have the receipt and the POS account number. I was brutalized and forced to send money that was meant to be used for my school fees. Please, help me. I don’t want to be ass@ulted in vain.”

Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the Force Public Relations Officer, responded to the tweet by ordering the Spokesman and other units within the Lagos Police Command to track down and look into the implicated personnel.

He stated, “SP Benjamin Hundeyin, take up this case and fish out the officers involved as urgently as possible.

Checking people’s phones by police operatives on the road is not allowed, and the Force has condemned such actions. We need to act on complaints like this.

I urge him to reach out and connect with Benjamin or any of our helplines.”