On Monday, Francis Adeyemi was driving from Papalanto, Ogun State, to Owode Onirin in Lagos State when policemen stopped him.

What was supposed to be a regular stop and search exercise in the Agege area of Lagos quickly escalated as the policemen demanded ₦50,000 from Adeyemi despite checking all his vehicle documents and license.

“One officer Nebor Okoluwa stopped me and requested for my vehicle documents,” Adeyemi told FIJ. “I presented them, but he started making threats of bodily harm. After much delay, he handed me over to one officer Osema Charles, who then took me to Elere Police Station.”

FIJ saw the documents Adeyemi presented to the policemen and independently confirmed they were recent and complete.

The Ogun resident who suffers avascular necrosis, a condition that has shortened one of his legs and causes him pains from his hips to his knees, told FIJ the policemen threatened to push him to the ground if he refused to pay them.

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Recalling the encounter, Adeyemi said, “I can’t remember everything they said, but when they noticed my awkward posture, they said, ‘I go push you down now, nothing go happen.‘”

After pleading for his freedom, Adeyemi conceded and offered to pay ₦5,000. The policemen then took him to a PoS merchant who lives at the station. There, he paid ₦5,000 into the Palmpay account of one Blessing Faasema.

“It was the only money I had in my account, and I even begged them to give me ₦1,000 out of it, but they refused,” Adeyemi told FIJ.

After the transaction, the police let him go on his way. He got his keys from the policemen and drove to Owode.

When FIJ called Amodu Jibrin, DPO of the station, he said he was not aware such happened. Jibrin asked to see Adeyemi so he could identify the erring officers and retrieve the money.

Jibrin said, “Please tell the man to see me. I am not aware of this, we are seriously against such attitude, and we do not send anybody to collect money from people.”

Adeyemi was already some distance away from the station at this time, but he assured he would be in the station on Wednesday to identify them.

Ojukwu is a reporter with FIJ in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe.