The unlawful detention of a member of the National Youth Service Corps who currently works as a software developer with a Public Relations/Communications firm (name withheld) by the Nigeria Police in Lagos State has been described as one of the most heinous crimes against humanity amongst the police that ought to be eliminated.

A civil rights group, Human Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), alleged there were several armed robbers embedded within the Nigeria Police Force, causing grave damage to the institutional image of the Nigeria Police Force, wondering why the nation's police hierarchy were not perturbed by the multiple cases of armed robbery involving their service men.

This was the conclusion of HURIWA in reaction to the information in the media that a police team picked the intern after complaining about his hairstyle, labelling him a ‘Yahoo boy’ (internet fraudster).

The Civil Rights group said it was animalistic and primitive that the NYSC' member, Mr. Daniel was slapped, assaulted and taken to Araromi Police Station at Adamo in Ikorodu where he was asked to pay for his freedom, just as the alleged police personnel have been identified as CP Strike Team, Anti-Cultism and Anti-Kidnapping Unit, (Ikorodu annex).

HURIWA which has specifically lamented that the pattern of systematic dehumanisation of Nigerian youths by the police on nebulous and unlawful grounds have become very entrenched within the ranks and file of the Nigeria Police Force regretted that some uniformwed men have become armed robbers under the guise of arresting those they wrongly termed as fraudsters without any shreds of evidence or empirical proofs, even as a friend of Daniel, identified as Patrick, recounted the ordeal of his friend at the weekend, revealing that the victim is “very traumatized.”

HURIWA, quoting media account of the incident as recalled by a credible eye witness, stated thus: “Daniel is a corps member serving in Lagos, his family is based outside the State. He was forcefully taken from Adamo street in Ikorodu. He and others were in a car looking for fuel and food when they were intercepted. The police ordered all out, searched them and the car but found nothing.

“Continuing with the narration of the encounter with the police, the eye witness spoke further: One then shouted: ‘This one na Yahoo boy, see him hair.’ Daniel told them he had a legitimate job but they didn’t listen. He was beaten and his shirt torn. They took him away and kept him in detention; was not allowed access to his family. At the police station, they demanded N150,000; later reduced it to N100,000 then N50,000. Explaining that he didn’t have money to pay, the policemen mocked him and said he will remain there till Monday for refusing to cooperate.”

HURIWA recalled that the eye witness stated also that: “After several calls by friends and colleagues to the authorities, Daniel was released. The Chief Officer at Araromi Police Station apologized and gave him N500 for transport. Daniel mentioned that they were about 14 of them detained unlawfully as at 8pm on Friday. Their families don’t know they are there. One was picked from a keke and, from what I heard, would be taken to Ikeja on Saturday. We don’t know what will become of those guys, they are helpless.”

HURIWA said “these gross human rights abuses by the police which have dovetailed into pure criminality and armed robbery are, to put it mildly, gross violations of the fundamental human rights provisions of chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

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