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Oyo Police: Student Who Died by Suicide Was Charged With Assault, Not ₦8,000 Debt

Published

3 weeks ago

September 19, 2026

The Commissioner of Police, Oyo State Command, CP Abimbola Olugbenga.

Oyo Police: Student Who Died by Suicide Was Charged With Assault, Not ₦8,000 Debt

The Oyo State Police Command has denied that it arrested and prosecuted 30-year-old student Al-Amin Mohammed over an outstanding ₦8,000 debt, saying he was instead charged with assault and malicious damage following a dispute with a female Point-of-Sale (POS) operator.

The clarification followed reports about Mohammed’s detention and subsequent death by suicide three days after his release from the Agodi Correctional Centre, Ibadan.

Mohammed died on September 17, 2026, three days after he was released from custody. His family had alleged that he was arrested and taken to court following a dispute over an ₦8,000 balance owed to a POS operator and that the experience left him distressed.

However, the police described the claim that Mohammed was arrested and charged because of the ₦8,000 debt as false, unfounded and misleading.

According to the Command, Mohammed initially approached the POS operator to collect ₦23,000 in cash, with the understanding that he would transfer the same amount to her through a POS transaction.

The police said the operator handed him the money, but he allegedly left without completing the transfer or returning the cash.

After efforts to recover the money, Mohammed reportedly returned ₦15,000, leaving an outstanding balance of ₦8,000.

The police said the POS operator subsequently took possession of Mohammed’s mobile phone pending repayment of the balance.

The dispute later escalated, according to the Command, when Mohammed allegedly went to the complainant’s residence at about 10pm on September 8, 2026.

The police alleged that he assaulted the woman and, during the confrontation, damaged her Airtel SIM registration machine, which was valued at ₦177,000.

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Members of the community reportedly intervened in an attempt to settle the dispute, but the effort failed. Mohammed was subsequently handed over to vigilantes, who brought him and the complainant to the police station.

The Command said officers heard both sides and made a further attempt to resolve the matter amicably, but the complainant insisted on pursuing the case in court.

The police therefore said Mohammed was charged with assault and malicious damage, rather than with owing the ₦8,000.

The Command also clarified that the student’s continued detention at the correctional centre was not a decision by the police to hold him over the debt.

According to the police, Mohammed was granted bail after his arraignment but remained at the Agodi Correctional Centre because he could not immediately meet the conditions imposed by the court. He was released after the bail conditions were eventually fulfilled.

Mohammed’s family, however, has given a different account of the events.

His mother, Simiat Mohammed, said her son had borrowed ₦23,000 from the POS operator and repaid ₦15,000, leaving the ₦8,000 balance.

She said the operator seized his mobile phone over the outstanding amount and that Mohammed later returned to retrieve it.

The family disputed the police account that he assaulted the woman and damaged her equipment, maintaining that the confrontation occurred in the course of the dispute over his phone.

The family said Mohammed was subsequently detained and taken to court before being remanded at the correctional centre. His parents later stood as sureties to secure his release.

According to his mother, Mohammed’s condition changed significantly after he returned home on September 14.

She said he became withdrawn, ate little and repeatedly complained about the humiliation he believed he had suffered after being arrested, taken to court and remanded.

Three days after his release, Mohammed reportedly ingested a poisonous substance and later died.

His family has called for an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his arrest, detention, court proceedings and death.

The police, however, cautioned against drawing a direct causal link between the criminal case and Mohammed’s death without verified evidence.

The Command said the circumstances surrounding his death should be established through an appropriate investigation rather than through what it described as an inaccurate or incomplete account.

The case has therefore left competing accounts of how the dispute escalated from an ₦8,000 outstanding balance into a police case.

While the family links Mohammed’s ordeal to the debt dispute, the police maintain that the criminal proceedings were based on allegations of assault and damage to a ₦177,000 SIM registration machine.

The available accounts establish that the ₦8,000 was connected to the original financial transaction, but they differ over the circumstances that followed, including the alleged assault, property damage and the events leading to Mohammed’s detention.

The circumstances surrounding Mohammed’s death and whether any direct connection exists between the events remain matters for further investigation.

Oyo Police: Student Who Died by Suicide Was Charged With Assault, Not ₦8,000 Debt

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Police Arrest Five, Recover Three Guns, Ammunition in Enugu

Published

45 minutes ago

October 8, 2026

Trends Admin

Commissioner of Police in Enugu State, CP Mamman Bitrus Giwa

Police Arrest Five, Recover Three Guns, Ammunition in Enugu

The Enugu State Police Command has arrested five suspects in separate operations across the state and recovered three firearms, six rounds of live ammunition and other exhibits.

The arrests were made between September 18 and October 7, 2026, as part of the command’s ongoing intelligence-led operations against armed robbery, cultism and other violent crimes.

In the latest operation, operatives of the Inyi Police Division responded to a distress call over an alleged armed robbery at Umuaor, Umukabia Isiama Awlaw community in Oji River Local Government Area at about 5:10 a.m. on October 7.

The operation led to the arrest of 26-year-old Arinze Osita Onwuaso, while other suspects reportedly fled the scene.

Police said operatives recovered a locally made cut-to-size single-barrel gun, two live cartridges, a pry bar, hammer, scissors and chisel from him.

In another operation on October 5, operatives of the Anti-Cultism Section of the Violent Crime Response Unit, attached to the Nsukka sector, arrested two suspected cult members at Umudioka community in Nsukka Local Government Area.

The suspects were identified as 24-year-old Jonas Adejo, also known as J-Money, and 25-year-old Okoro Innocent, also known as Virus.

According to the police, three rounds of 9mm ammunition were recovered from the two suspects.

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The command said the suspects allegedly confessed during interrogation to belonging to the Supreme Vikings Confraternity, an allegation they would have the opportunity to challenge in court.

A separate operation on September 25 resulted in the arrest of 25-year-old Anichebe Ogbonna at an alleged criminal hideout in Amagu Mpu community, Aninri Local Government Area.

Police operatives, working with members of the Neighbourhood Watch Group, reportedly raided the location following intelligence on suspected criminal activities.

A locally made pistol was allegedly recovered from Ogbonna.

Meanwhile, operatives of the 9th Mile Police Division arrested 38-year-old Chukwujekwu Chukwuemeka at Ameke-Ngwo, Udi Local Government Area, at about 11 p.m. on September 18.

The police said Chukwuemeka was arrested following information allegedly linking him to armed robbery activities in the area.

A cut-to-size pump-action gun and one live cartridge were reportedly recovered from him.

The four operations produced a total of five arrests, three firearms and six rounds of ammunition, with investigations continuing into the alleged offences and the suspects’ individual roles.

The Commissioner of Police in Enugu State, CP Mamman Bitrus Giwa, commended the officers involved and residents whose information assisted the operations.

Giwa urged residents to continue providing credible information to the police to help prevent armed robbery, cult-related violence and other security threats across the state.

The suspects remain presumed innocent unless proven guilty by a court of law.

Police Arrest Five, Recover Three Guns, Ammunition in Enugu

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Court Grants Alleged Fake JAMB Registrar N50m Bail, Sets Strict Conditions

Published

5 hours ago

October 8, 2026

Trends Admin

Arinze Nwogba

Court Grants Alleged Fake JAMB Registrar N50m Bail, Sets Strict Conditions

The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted N50 million bail to Arinze Nwogba, who is facing trial for allegedly impersonating the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Professor Segun Aina.

Justice Salim Ibrahim, in a ruling on Thursday, admitted Nwogba to bail in the sum of N50 million with two sureties in like sum.

The judge held that the alleged offence was bailable and not a capital offence, while noting that Nwogba had indicated through his bail application that he would not abscond and would make himself available for trial.

The court, however, attached stringent conditions to the bail.

One of the sureties must be a Federal Government civil servant not below Grade Level 14, while both sureties must reside within the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The judge further directed that one of the sureties must reside in Asokoro, Maitama or Guzape.

Each surety is required to swear an affidavit of means and submit a tax clearance certificate covering the previous two years.

The court also ordered Nwogba and the sureties to submit photocopies of their National Identification slips.

The court registrar was directed to verify the bail documents and issue a report, with the prosecution also required to participate in the verification process.

Importantly, the ruling does not mean Nwogba walks out of custody immediately. He is to remain at the Kuje Correctional Centre until the bail conditions are perfected.

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The case has been adjourned until October 19, 2026, for commencement of trial.

Nwogba is being prosecuted by the Inspector-General of Police on a six-count charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/612/2026.

The police allege that he impersonated Professor Aina by using the JAMB registrar’s photograph on WhatsApp and Truecaller, allegedly with the intention of obtaining financial advantage.

According to the prosecution, a petition was submitted to the Inspector-General of Police over a suspected criminal operation involving the unauthorised use of the registrar’s name, photograph and telephone number to deceive members of the public.

The police alleged that the suspects also used LinkedIn and WhatsApp to approach prospective victims with purported government contracts.

In one alleged scheme, the impersonators reportedly claimed that the Federal Ministry of Education had approved the supply of 200 HP laptops as part of a digitisation programme.

The prosecution alleged that prospective beneficiaries were subsequently asked to make payments, including N900,000 described as an initial “handshake” and another N3 million purportedly for officials of the ministry.

The police said Nwogba was arrested in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, during investigations into the alleged impersonation.

The prosecution further alleged that Nwogba used the operational name Dr Stephen Igwe and admitted forwarding bank account details to a relative allegedly connected with the fraudulent operation.

Another alleged member of the operation, identified by the police as Nnabuife Nwekpa, is said to be at large.

Nwogba pleaded not guilty to the six-count charge and remains presumed innocent unless and until the prosecution proves the allegations against him in court.

The bail ruling therefore allows him an opportunity to secure his release pending trial, but only after satisfying the conditions imposed by the court.

Court Grants Alleged Fake JAMB Registrar N50m Bail, Sets Strict Conditions

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NESREA to Honour Lagos Baale After Dramatic Rescue of Endangered Sea Turtle

Published

5 hours ago

October 8, 2026

Trends Admin

NESREA to Honour Lagos Baale After Dramatic Rescue of Endangered Sea Turtle

The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) is set to honour the Baale of Okun Igando in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State, Chief Semiu Waliu Jejelaiye, after he intervened to save a large sea turtle from being killed by fishermen.

The development followed the rescue of the marine animal after it became entangled in a fishing net along the coastline of the community.

The fishermen reportedly initially believed they had caught a large fish. However, the situation changed after the Baale intervened and stopped attempts to kill or sell the animal.

Chief Jejelaiye urged the fishermen and other residents to release the turtle, while explaining the importance of protecting endangered and threatened marine species.

The fishermen, with the assistance of other community members, carefully freed the animal from the net and returned it alive to the Atlantic Ocean.

The rescue attracted widespread attention after footage of the incident circulated online, with many Nigerians commending the community for choosing to protect the animal rather than kill it.

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NESREA has subsequently commended the Baale and the local fishing community for their intervention, describing the rescue as an example of grassroots environmental conservation.

The agency is expected to issue a Letter of Commendation to Chief Jejelaiye in recognition of his role in preventing harm to the marine animal and promoting wildlife protection within the community.

The incident has also renewed attention to the challenges facing sea turtles in Nigeria, particularly along the Lagos coastline.

Sea turtles are exposed to several threats, including accidental capture in fishing nets, destruction of nesting habitats, pollution, illegal hunting and human consumption.

Conservation efforts in the Ibeju-Lekki area have previously focused on educating fishing communities about the importance of protecting sea turtles and finding ways to reduce conflicts between conservation and fishing activities.

The latest rescue also highlights the role that traditional rulers and coastal communities can play in protecting endangered wildlife.

NESREA, which is responsible for enforcing Nigeria’s environmental laws and regulations, has continued to advocate stronger community participation in biodiversity conservation and environmental protection.

The rescued turtle was identified in reports as a leatherback sea turtle, one of the largest living turtle species. Leatherback turtles face serious threats globally from fishing gear, habitat loss, pollution and other human activities.

The successful release of the turtle back into the ocean has been described as a positive example of what can happen when local communities respond quickly to protect threatened wildlife.

The development is also expected to strengthen calls for greater awareness among fishermen and residents of Nigeria’s coastal communities on how to safely handle marine animals accidentally caught in fishing nets.

For Okun Igando, the intervention by the Baale has turned what could have been the death of a rare marine animal into a notable wildlife conservation success story.