A Kwara man has died in the custody of the Kwara State Police Command after he was arrested and detained on Friday for allegedly failing to pay back a debt to his friend.

Confirming the incident to Peoples Gazette, the command’s spokesperson, Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, on behalf of the Commissioner of Police, Victor Olaiya, said the suspect was held for allegedly obtaining N220,000 under false pretences, adding that the circumstances that led to his death are under investigation. Family members insisted the amount involved was N200,000, and the police did not show evidence to support their claim that it was N220,000.

Mrs Ejire-Adeyemi said Jimoh Adetunji Abdulquadri was invited for questioning over the monetary dispute, adding that Kwara police commissioner Victor Olaiya has ordered an urgent investigation. 

The police statement came after social media videos showed the family of Mr Abdulquadri mourning his demise, which reportedly came after he was repeatedly tortured. The police denied torturing the deceased. 

One of the family members in the video, who identified herself as Aishat Biola, a breast-feeding mother, spoke in the Yoruba language, saying: “My younger brother is the person that was killed. We were all here when my brother and I were cracking jokes when they came to pick him up. They sent people to deceive him away from here, not knowing those who came to whisk him away were on the road.”

Other voices in the background could be heard saying Mr Abdulquadri was an easy-going citizen who didn’t spoke or drink alcohol, urging state and federal authorities to intervene in the matter to ensure justice. 

Another mourner in the video, said to be the deceased’s mother, also cried out over how her son was murdered, even after the police had “fraudulently” taken all the money he had had on him. The police did not address the allegations. 

Meanwhile, The Gazette heard from sources that the officers of Kwara State Investigation Bureau, a department under the state police command, have been placed under investigation because they carried out the arrest of Mr Abdulquadri, 35.