Ezekiel, a 19-year-old student at the Federal Polytechnic Bida in Niger State, has been reimbursed N130,000 of the N140,000 extorted from him by police officers in Niger State.

This restitution follows persistent interventions and reports by FIJ after his unjust arrest on July 14, when an unidentified police officer led a team to extort the teenager, who had been in his new apartment for just three weeks.

The student expressed his gratitude to FIJ for its intervention, noting that the N130,000 was intended to complete his rent.

READ MORE: ‘Money for Fuel, Paper’ — Student Who Lost N140,000 to Police Extorted Again

“Today, I received my money back in cash from Muhammed Yahaya, the police officer who extorted N140,000 from me. An officer from the Kpakungu Police Station called and informed me that their Divisional Police Officer (DPO) wanted to see me. Right on the spot, they made him repay the N130,000 he took from me. I am very grateful for that. Thank you very much,” Ezekiel told FIJ.

Ezekiel added that the officers in Kpakungu told him they tracked down Yahaya and discovered that, although he is a police officer, he is based in Abuja, not Niger State. However, this claim is at odds with Ezekiel’s earlier testimony, as he had told FIJ that the point-of-sale merchant Yahaya used as a conduit claimed to know him.

READ MORE: Niger Police Arrest 19-Year-Old Polytechnic Student, Extort N140,000 From Him

FIJ had previously reported that Ezekiel was at home expecting a delivery on July 14 when men identifying as Operation Flush officers from the Kpakungu Police Station arrested him without cause.

Ezekiel recounted that at the police station, officers seized his phone and prevented him from contacting anyone. Upon discovering that he had N140,000 in his Opay wallet, they demanded N700,000 for his release.

With the ‘help’ of Yahaya, the coordinating officer, he paid N130,000 to secure his freedom after Yahaya requested a N10,000 bribe to reduce the bail amount.