Man dehumanising lady in viral video, not a policeman

Juliana Francis

The supposed policeman, who video recorded and humiliated a lady during the arrest of a robbery suspect in Ibadan, Oyo State, is not a policeman, disclosed a senior police source.

This latest information came hours after the Force Spokesman, Frank Mba, announced the arrest of two policemen, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Olatunji and Inspector Gboyega Oyeniyi and a civil in the unprofessional conduct and arrest of the female victim.

The man video-recording the victim and barking a series of dehumanizing questions at her, has been identified as Mr Tope Owoeye, a well-known police informant based in Ibadan.

He is the owner of Wycliffe Hotel, located in Ibadan. Incidentally, the recording of the petrified victim was done in the premises of the hotel.

People who knew Owoeye have taken to different social media outlets to express their anger, calling for his arrest and prosecution in the manner he treated the victim and posing as a policeman.

According to them, being a police informant, didn’t give or confer powers of a policeman on him to make arrests and carry out interrogations.

In the video, Owoeye knocked down the victim and embarked on asking irrelevant questions, which included asking who deflowered her and when she was deflowered. He also asked her why she left her boyfriend to date an armed robber.

This was even as the victim repeatedly told him that she had just met the robbery suspect and had never had sex with him.

One of the outraged Nigerians, Adeola Monplaisir @Ademonplaisir on twitter, said: “The main perpetrator in the dehumanizing of the lady in Ibadan, shouldn’t be farfetched. Tope Owoeye should be brought to book ASAP. His treatment of the young lady could elicit suicide in some people. As an institution guided by law for protection of lives and property, it’s sad.”

Another twitter user, Olusola Alalade @OlusolaAlalade alleged that Wyclef is known for extorting money from Yahoo boys and also lives beyond his means.

Also, Uncle Gee@UncleGeeOnline, said: “Wyclef is not a police officer. His real name is Tope Owoeye. We grew up in the same compound. Go to the Sanyo area of Ibadan, from the express, tell cyclists you’re going to Owoeye’s house. I was surprised to see him in the video.”