Denounce Allegation of Extortion
Fresh details continued to surface today following the release of a viral video on social media by a man, Ibrahim Quadri aged 25 years in Ilorin.
In the said video, police officers attached to the Anti- Cult unit of the command were alleged to have arrested a young man and extorted him of his money because he was wearing dread locked hairs.
Contrary to the content of the video, the state police command promptly released a statement today explaining the facts of the incident after their investigation.
According to the press statement dated November 2nd, 2022 and signed by the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Okasanmi Ajayi(anipr),
“the character in the video, whose real identity is Ibrahim Quadri aged 25years was one of the occupants of a commercial Keke Napep that was stopped for routine search at Maraba area of Ilorin yesterday 1/11/2022 by police officers attached to the Anti-cult unit of the Command.”
The police release further shed lights on the incident that
“immediately the Keke was flagged down, the said Ibrahim jumped down from the tricycle and started raising alarm that it was because of his looks that made the police to stop the tricycle, his attempt at preventing the operatives from performing their duty by shouting attracted passersby while at the same time was recording the incident, this prompted one of the policemen to bring out his phone and also started to record the scene, the moment the suspect noticed he was equally being recorded, he ran away abandoning his bag containing some documents and a Nokia Phone.
No sooner did he left that he uploaded a video stating that he was stopped because he was having dreadlocks and was extorted of his money and ATM card.”
This morning however, the dreadlocked young man in the trending Video Showed up at the Police Command office to apologize and retract his allegations of Extortion in the trending Video.
At the same time, the suspect has denounced “most painfully, the wrong information he circulated on social media to disparage the Force.”
He was however interrogated during which process ” he confirmed that no money was taken from him by the policemen and that it was his friend that uploaded the video on social media.”
” He has been charged to court for offences of Obstructing police officers from performing their lawful duties, Injurious falsehood and belonging to a gang of thieves.”
The command wishes to advise the citizens, especially the youth to always obey the law and never hide under the unrestricted access to social media to blackmail police officers performing their lawful duties.
The police has the constitutional right to protect lives and property as well as prevent and detect crimes using lawful means which the policemen in this instance has done.
