Precious Uke, a stylist, was on her way to the Lagos Trade Fair Complex on Saturday afternoon when officers attached to the notorious Festac Police Station arrested her for having a contraceptive pill in her bag.
Uke told FIJ that she had just alighted from a vehicle at Mile 2 Bus Stop when some officers asked her to open her bag so they could search its contents. When she complied, they found the contraceptive pill Postinor-2 in her bag.
As soon as the officers saw the pill, they accused her of committing a crime and ordered her to follow them to the police station. They also alleged that she was in possession of hard drugs.
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“They said Postinor-2 was a hard drug and that I had committed a crime. They then took me to the police station. There, they asked me to write a statement. After I finished, they told me to bail myself with N500,000, but I said I didn’t have that kind of money,” Uke told FIJ.
She said the officers threatened to detain her after she told them she couldn’t afford the amount they were demanding. At that point, she called a friend to inform her of the situation, but the officers objected.
“I was still on the phone with my friend, who wanted to know what was happening, when they asked me to go into the cell. They were dragging me. In the process, my hand got caught on the iron door and it tore through my skin,” Uke said.
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“The officers showed no concern. They said the wound was a result of my stubbornness. If an officer hadn’t later asked that the door be opened and that I be brought out, I could have bled to death in there. When I came out, they poured Dettol on the wound and then took me to a pharmacy for treatment.”
Uke was still in the police cell when her friend contacted FIJ to report what was happening.
FIJ spoke with the officers on duty to understand the situation. A man who identified himself as the Officer-in-Charge of the Anti-Robbery Squad at the station said their provost had taken over the matter and ensured that Uke received treatment before being released.
Uke had committed no crime yet she was manhandled and detained. When asked if she wanted to press charges, she replied, “No.”
The post Lagos Police Arrest Woman for Having Postinor-2 in Her Bag ‘Because It Is Hard Drug’ appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.