The Lagos State Police Command has launched an investigation into serious allegations of attempted extortion and assault by officers from the Onikan Police Station Tactical Squad.
The investigation follows a public complaint by a resident, Boluwatife, who claims the officers attempted to extort ₦3 million from him at gunpoint.
In a detailed account shared on social media, Boluwatife alleged the incident occurred around 1 a.m. on Thursday while he and a friend were driving from Lekki to Victoria Island.
He stated that five armed officers stopped them near the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge roundabout, immediately cocked their rifles, and accused him of being involved in the killing of police officers in Lekki.
Boluwatife further claimed that he and his friend were then handcuffed, put into a police van, and taken to the station, while the officers drove his car away separately.
At the station, he alleges officers ordered him to strip off his clothes, shoes, and socks as they prepared to detain him. He said the officers searched his car and documents but did not find anything illegal.
“Two hours later, they demanded N3 million,” he wrote. “I refused, and after more pressure, they reduced it to N500,000. They returned my phone, and I quickly contacted my people for help. Thankfully, I was rescued.”
Boluwatife also alleged that the officers threatened to frame him as a fraudster and cultist when he refused to comply, and even threatened to shoot him multiple times.
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“I’m not shaken, but what about the common man who has nobody? They said all sorts of things to me. Ten police officers threatening you for no reason is just wild,” he wrote.
Reacting to the allegations, Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, announced on X on Thursday that the police leadership has ordered a full investigation into the matter.
“The Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Jimoh, has summoned all the officers to the Command Headquarters in Ikeja and directed the Deputy Commissioner of Police, State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, to investigate the complaint. The public will be updated on the outcome,” Hundeyin said.
