Tayo Adedare (not real name), a Lagos resident, has recounted how officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) arrested one Sunday Adediran, a pastor in his 50s, unjustly and are now demanding a bribe of N10 million to release him.

Speaking with FIJ on Friday, Adedare said it all started when NDLEA officials chased some young men into Adediran’s residence on Anifowose Street, Mushin, Lagos, in the wee hours of Wednesday.

He said that while the officials were in the room occupied by Toheeb, one of Adediran’s tenants, they discovered an undeclared illegal drug in his room.

“On Wednesday, NDLEA officials were in the neighbourhood to raid – they do this every time. They chase after these young boys, seize their goods and arrest them,” he told FIJ.

“On this day, they were chasing the young boys as usual around 2 am, and one of them jumped into Adediran’s compound through the fence. The NDLEA officials went after him and they started to break into rooms to fish him out.

“While breaking into the rooms of tenants in the compound, they broke into Toheeb’s room and found some small stuff they believed to be an illegal substance. It was wrapped like it was going to be delivered.

“The NDLEA officers said the wrapped content was an illegal substance, and on the spot, they arrested four people, including Adediran’s aged wife. Afterwards, they released them and said they were going to arrest the landlord.

“This was the beginning of our ordeal.”

Adedare said that upon arrest, the officers took Adediran to their office in Gbagada and placed some other substance in front of him while making him pose with them.

“After they took him to their office, they placed some other illegal substance in front of him and took his biometrics. They took his pictures but have yet to post them.

“They said if we wanted to bail him, we should bring N10 million. This is from someone who only has money to feed himself and his immediate family. He spends most of his time in church and only sleeps in his house occasionally.”

The Lagos resident said the anti-drug agency officers have now transferred Adediran to Ikoyi but are still hellbent on N10 million while the culprit is at large.

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“Toheeb ran away when news broke about the arrest and the old man is having to deal with this alone,” the source said.

“The NDLEA also said they would confiscate the property where the drug was found, but it doesn’t even belong to him alone. It is a family-owned property that has been divided. He is not even the landlord of the room in question.

“Even if the NDLEA sells the house, it can’t even be worth the N10 million they are demanding for bail.”

When FIJ contacted Femi Babafemi, spokesperson of the anti-drug agency, via WhatsApp, he denied the N10 million claim and said Adediran was arrested for possession of cannabis and allowing his house to be used for storing it.

“The suspect was arrested with 20kg of cannabis sativa in his house. Any claim of demand for N10 million bribe for his release appears more like blackmail because the arrest was promptly reported to the headquarters in Abuja by the Lagos command,” BabaFemi told FIJ.

“Charges of possession and allowing his house to be used for storing illegal drugs are already being filed against him.”

Last December, FIJ exposed how officials of the NDLEA took illegal possession of a property in Lagos and turned it into a hideout for shady activities.

The NDLEA had accused the owners of producing and packaging methamphetamine, an illicit substance.

However, FIJ found that the anti-drug officials had not only forcefully taken over possession of the property but also seized the official documents of the building and demanded a bribe of N30 million to release the property and its documents.