Hundreds of youths at the Orile Agege area of Lagos State, today besieged the Elere Police Station Agege, threatening to set it ablaze, after news filtered out that their friend who was randomly arrested by a team of policemen, was tortured to death.
The infuriated youths further claimed that the death of the deceased, identified as Olayode Ayoade, 28, occurred after the police demanded for N2million bail for the deceased and other young men arrested in the area.
Ayoade and three others were said to have been arrested after policemen on patrol cruised to their area on Thursday and saw the men drinking and laughing.
The policemen allegedly arrested the men for failing to carry out the mandatory Thursday sanitation meant for traders in Lagos State. It is yet unclear whether the deceased and his friends are traders.
One of the deceased friends, Kazeem Oyolola, said: “Our friend, Ismail, first went to the station to get their bail, but he was also detained. This prompted me to go there. When I got to the station, one of the officers, identified as Festus told me to go and bring N2 million for the release of the arrested boys. I begged him for N45, 000. He told me that the money would not be enough for them to share. He said that the Divisional Police Officer and the team that carried out the arrest would collect. That was what we bargain on Thursday before the death of Ayoade filtered into the community around 1 am on Friday (today).”
The men were arrested at the area of their residence, No, 14, Ajayi Ibe Street, Orile Agege area of the state on Thursday.
A resident said: “The policemen came to the community during the state’s Thursday environmental sanitation exercise and saw the deceased and his friend drinking at the front of their house. The police probably felt they should be sweeping and cleaning and had arrested, while others ran away. Four of them were arrested, but Ayoade was tortured to death by the police.”
Ismail Adeniji, another friend of the deceased recounted his own experience. He said: “Immediately they were taken to the police station, I went there to see if I could secure their bail. When I got there, I was also asked to write a statement.
“Ayoade told me how he was tortured by the policemen who wanted him to tell him what he did for a living. He told me that he was hung on the ceiling fan of the station while they beat him. He said that he that slumped and was rushed to a private hospital at Elere.
“While at the hospital, the Chief Medical Doctor of the hospital asks the two policemen what they did to him, but they denied doing anything to him.”
The victim was later admitted and drip was given to him. The policemen were said to have left the hospital immediately they took him to the hospital, but the suspect died.
When youths rushed to the station, the DPO reasoned with them, stressing that he was not aware of what was happening in his division.
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