Published 7th Jan, 2022

By Emmanuel Uti

Ifeanyi Kanu, a student at the Federal University of Petroleum, Effurun, Delta State, has narrated how officers attached to Festac Police Station, Lagos, detained and extorted N50,000 from him illegally.

Kanu said he was on a Bolt ride heading to Yaba on Thursday at around 12:30 pm, when some police officers stopped his vehicle near Apple Junction in Festac, entered it, and started questioning him.

“They asked whether I had any incriminating items, to which I replied that I did not. However, they confiscated my phone and combed through my gallery. They examined a screenshot of one of my bank transactions and decided instantly that I was an online fraudster,” he told FIJ.

The police officers instructed Kanu to enter their vehicle and threatened to refer him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

“They stated that I would make N2 million payment to the EFCC if they took me to their office. They saw other transactions and asked why a student could afford such transactions. Then they asked to see the amount I had in my bank account.

“When I showed them my balance, they said that the N50,000 was insufficient. They then demanded that I pay N500,000 to be released. But seeing I had nothing, they took me to their police station.”

When they arrived at the station, Kanu told them that he could only pay N150,000. However, he barely had N50,000.

He told them that he would have to request money from other people to get all the N150,000, and the officers advised him to contact his mother.

“I wanted to avoid involving my mother, so I phoned a few friends. I raised N40,000. The police officers took my image, coerced me into writing a statement, then accompanied me to a PoS shop, where I deposited N90,000 on their behalf,” he said.

FIJ placed several calls to CSP Adekunle Ajisebutu, the Lagos police spokesperson, but his line was unavailable. He had also not replied to a text addressed to him at press time.

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