OYO POLICE REJECTS CLAIM OF “₦8,000 DEBT DETENTION” — CLARIFIES FACTS BEHIND SUSPECT’S ARREST AND COURT PROCEEDINGS

OYO POLICE REJECTS CLAIM OF “₦8,000 DEBT DETENTION” — CLARIFIES FACTS BEHIND SUSPECT’S ARREST AND COURT PROCEEDINGS

The attention of the Oyo State Police Command has been drawn to a publication with the headline, “They Ruined My Reputation; Student Commits Suicide After Oyo Police Detention Over ₦8,000 Debt,” which has subsequently been circulated widely across social media platforms. The publication alleges, among other things, that the Police arrested and charged the deceased to court over an ₦8,000 debt, resulting in his remand and eventual suicide three days after his release.

The Command wishes to categorically state that the narrative is false, unfounded and misleading, as it does not represent the circumstances of the case or the basis upon which the suspect was charged to court. For clarity, the facts established during Police investigation are as follows:

Investigation established, and the suspect confessed, that he approached the complainant, a female POS operator, to collect the sum of ₦23,000 in cash, with the intention of transferring the same amount to the complainant through the POS transaction. The complainant obliged and handed the suspect the said sum in cash. However, immediately after collecting the money, the suspect left the scene without effecting the intended transfer or returning the money.

Following persistent efforts, the suspect eventually refunded ₦15,000, leaving an outstanding balance of ₦8,000, which he subsequently refused to pay. Consequently, the complainant took possession of the suspect’s mobile phone pending the refund of the outstanding ₦8,000.

Rather than settle the outstanding balance, the suspect subsequently stormed the residence of the complainant on 8 September 2026 at about 2200hrs, where he assaulted her and, in the course of the assault, damaged her Airtel SIM registration machine valued at ₦177,000.

Following the incident, members of the community intervened in an effort to resolve the matter between the parties. However, the intervention proved unsuccessful, and the suspect was thereafter handed over to vigilantes, who brought him to the Police Station alongside the complainant. Upon receiving the parties, the Police heard from both sides and made a further effort to resolve the matter amicably. However, that intervention also proved unsuccessful, as the complainant insisted on pursuing the case in court.

Accordingly, having regard to the facts established during investigation and the evidence available, the suspect was charged to court for assault and malicious damage, and not for the outstanding ₦8,000. The distinction is important, as the criminal proceedings arose from the assault and the damage to the SIM registration machine valued at ₦177,000.

Upon arraignment, the court considered the facts and evidence presented and granted the suspect bail. His subsequent remand at the Agodi Correctional Centre resulted from his inability to immediately meet the bail conditions imposed by the court, and not from any Police decision to detain him over the ₦8,000. He was subsequently released upon meeting the conditions.

In view of these facts, the claim that the Police arrested and charged the suspect to court because of his inability to repay ₦8,000 is false, unfounded and misleading. While the ₦8,000 constituted the outstanding balance in the antecedent financial transaction, it was not the basis of the criminal charge before the court.

As regards the reported death of the suspect, the Command considers it inappropriate to draw a causal connection between the Police case and the reported death without verified facts establishing such a link. The circumstances surrounding the death should therefore be determined through appropriate investigation and established evidence, rather than through an inaccurate or incomplete narrative.