This shocking experience of an innocent Nigerian man in the hands of corrupt police officers will really leave you in shock.
*Photo used for illustrative purpose*
A Nigerian man identified as Victor Ibeh has narrated the shocking
ordeal he suffered in the hands of policemen after he took delivery of
an aphrodisiac. His touching story of the decay prevalent in the
Nigerian police force will make you shiver.
Victor Ibeh wrote: “Last week I went to take delivery of some
aphrodisiac that I ordered online for a friend. It was wrapped in such a
way that you would think some dollar bills were stashed inside. When I
got the call from the delivery guy I decided to meet him at the Chinese
restaurant in Apple junction. I took the package and went off with the
bike guy that took me there.
For one brief moment it didn’t occur to me that I could have
been followed. I was trying to get into a street when a tricycle halted
before us and three policemen jumped out with guns and ordered us to
stop.
They were so hostile that I thought there was something else.
My first thought was that they came for the bike man, because I know
most times bike men are restricted from plying major roads. Instead they
walked up to me and the next I heard was ‘criminal’. I wore Jean
trousers and a polo on leather slippers. Technically I looked like a guy
man. It didn’t look anything near prof victor Ibeh.
They conducted an instant search on me brought out my wallet
and was looking into it as if I could hide a bomb in it. I tried to
protest and I saw they were really prepared for me. They gave me back my
wallet and ordered me to get into the tricycle. I was still confused.
When I took that parcel I kept it on my thigh while sitting on the bike.
Maybe they thought it was bomb or something. They took me to the
nearest police station in Okota and dragged me into one of their rooms.
From my experience and from the experiences of other people, I
learnt never to fight with Nigerian police people. I know there are very
good police men anyway but the number of corrupt officers is
overwhelming. They can easily set you up with anything. Most of the
people they parade on television as criminals are innocent people. They
can go to the extent of killing you and tainting the memory of your
name. They are very ruthless. The simple truth is that you are really
not safe around a police man.
With the knowledge of all these I knew I wasn’t going to start
claiming good citizen. It was in this country that justices of the
Supreme Court were arrested in gestapo style. Anybody can be victimized
and it’s going to be your word against theirs. They ordered me to open
the package and I did. One of them took my phone and instructed me to
unlock it. I did. He started going through my whatsapp chats and other
things looking for something incriminating. I opened the parcel and I
saw the surprise registered on their faces.they obviously thought it was
money. They looked at the drug and didn’t see a Nafdac number so they
booked me down for purchasing something that had no Nafdac number. It
was useless to argue at that point that I ordered the drug online and
that it wasn’t mine. I knew what they wanted and had no other option
than to play along. The man going through my phone was not really
interested in my chats. I noticed the way he was scrolling through the
phone. Them he got to a chat I had with somebody who was asking me
questions about Internet fraud/yahoo, whom I told I was going to get
back to but didn’t.
He immediately said I was a yahoo guy and that was my second
offense. I told him to read the chat again. All these while I maintained
a smile and laughed at intervals. All I needed was to get out of there
alive and without scandal. He read the chat again and found out that he
was wrong. Then he told me that the drug I got was contraband. I said I
didn’t know about that. He told me to either cooperate or I would have
to write a statement and be detained. At that moment, they had my phone,
I was totally out of reach. Important calls were coming into my phone
but I was forbidden from taking them. Nobody except my friend knew where
I went. This is a dangerous period to act smart with policemen. They
could have replaced that drug with cocaine and some other things and
nailed me with them. Nobody would ever know the truth.
I just respected myself and asked them what it would take for
my sins to be forgiven. They billed me 20k so I began haggle price with
them. They got impatient and wanted to start getting ideas in their
head. I told them to calm down that we are not fighting. I pleaded with
them to accept 5k. After much talk they accepted. I paid them the money
and they gave me back the drug. One of them who was elderly came to me
and requested that I give him some of the drugs that he is having
erectile disfunction. I was like’ really? After collecting my money?
Well I couldn’t give him because it wasn’t mine.
I walked out and took a bike home. Only a person who has been a
victim of Nigerian policemen can tell that I actually escaped danger
that day. I was just lucky. Not everybody gets so lucky. I know a school
mate that was framed up by the police back in school. Guns, charms,
drugs were all used to frame him up and he landed in awka prisons. He
escaped death by the whisker. People die daily for offenses they didn’t
commit. Something has to be done about this issue of security in the
country. By God a Nigerian is not safe. Never!!!
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