N8,000 Debt Suicide: How Oyo Police Triggered ‘Poor’ Student’s Death

The death by suicide of 30-year-old Al-Amin Mohammed, a polytechnic student and aluminium worker in Ibadan, Oyo State, has sparked controversy over how a dispute involving an outstanding ₦8,000 escalated into police detention, court proceedings and correctional custody.

Mohammed died on September 17, three days after his release from the Agodi Correctional Centre. His family said he became withdrawn, stopped eating and repeatedly complained about the humiliation he allegedly experienced after his arrest and detention.

According to the family, the dispute began after a Point-of-Sale operator allegedly withheld Mohammed’s mobile phone over the unpaid ₦8,000 balance. They said he later returned to retrieve the phone, leading to an altercation and his subsequent detention.

The family alleged that Mohammed was taken to the police and eventually arraigned, while his mother appealed for the matter to be settled. They also claimed that the experience badly affected him and that he repeatedly insisted that he had been treated unfairly.

However, the Oyo State Police Command rejected the claim that Mohammed was prosecuted simply because of the ₦8,000 debt. Police said the matter escalated after Mohammed allegedly assaulted the female POS operator and damaged an Airtel SIM registration machine valued at ₦177,000.

The command said the ₦8,000 was only the outstanding balance from an earlier transaction and was not the criminal charge before the court. It maintained that Mohammed was charged with assault and malicious damage.

Police also said Mohammed was granted bail but remained in custody because he could not immediately meet the bail conditions. He was eventually released on September 14.

The conflicting accounts have raised questions about the handling of the dispute, the role of the police and vigilantes, and whether the events surrounding Mohammed’s detention contributed to his death.

The police have cautioned against establishing a direct link between the case and Mohammed’s suicide without a proper investigation. His family and others have called for an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding his arrest, detention and death.

The case remains disputed, with Mohammed’s family maintaining that the ₦8,000 dispute set the events in motion, while the police insist that the criminal proceedings were based on allegations of assault and malicious damage.