The claims that members of the Onikan Police Station Tactical Squad tried to extort N3 million from a resident at gunpoint have prompted the Lagos State Police Command to open an official inquiry.
The complainant, who went by Boluwatife (@Tife_badass) on X (previously Twitter), claimed that the incident happened at around one in the morning on Thursday while he and a companion were traveling from Lekki to Victoria Island for an artist’s gig.
In a thorough social media post, Boluwatife stated that he was stopped by roughly five armed police officers close to the Lekki–Ikoyi Link Bridge roundabout.
He claims that the officers accused him of killing police officers in Lekki, primed their weapons, and dragged him out of the driver’s seat.
He claimed that while policemen drove his car apart, he and his friend were handcuffed, put in a police Hilux van, and driven to the station.
He claimed that in order to prepare for his incarceration, authorities at the Onikan Police Station told him to take off his shirt, shoes, and socks. They apparently looked through his paperwork and automobile, but they couldn’t find anything that would implicate him.
He wrote, “They demanded N3 million two hours later.” when further pressure, they lowered it to N500,000 when I declined. After they gave my phone back, I immediately called my people to ask for assistance. Fortunately, I was saved.
Boluwatife further said that when he disobeyed, the officers threatened to shoot him several times and to paint him as a cultist and fraudster.
“I’m not frightened, but what about the average person who has nothing? They told me a variety of things. It’s crazy that ten police officers would threaten you without cause,” he added.
Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer CSP Benjamin Hundeyin responded to the accusations on Thursday, saying on X that a thorough inquiry had been ordered by the state’s police leadership.
“The Deputy Commissioner of Police, State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, has been instructed to look into the complaint by Commissioner of Police CP Olohundare Jimoh, who has called all of the officers to the Command Headquarters in Ikeja. The results will be communicated to the public,” Hundeyin stated.
