Fresh documentary evidence has raised questions over the Oyo State Police Command’s account of the circumstances that led to the detention and prosecution of 30-year-old Al-Amin Mohammed, who later died by suicide after being released from custody.
The police had denied that Al-Amin was arrested and prosecuted over an outstanding N8,000 debt, insisting that the criminal case against him was based on allegations of assault and malicious damage.
However, the charge sheet presented before the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Ibadan appears to differ from several aspects of the police explanation.
Al-Amin, a student of a polytechnic in Kwara State who also worked as an aluminium fixer, became involved in a dispute after collecting N23,000 from a Point-of-Sale operator, identified as Kazeem Mukaila. He had reportedly repaid N15,000, leaving N8,000 outstanding.
The disagreement escalated after the operator’s apprentice allegedly seized Al-Amin’s mobile phone over the unpaid balance. Al-Amin later returned to demand his phone, saying he was prepared to settle the outstanding amount, but a confrontation reportedly followed.
He was subsequently taken to the Sanyo Police Division in Ibadan after being handed over to a vigilante.
According to the police, the case eventually resulted in criminal proceedings because of alleged assault and damage to property, rather than because of the outstanding debt.
The command said the property allegedly damaged was an Airtel SIM registration machine valued at N177,000 and maintained that Al-Amin was granted bail by the court but remained in custody because he could not immediately meet the bail conditions.
The charge sheet, however, contains notable differences.
Rather than assault, the first count accuses Al-Amin of conduct likely to cause a breach of the peace. More significantly, the second count refers to an Android Itel phone allegedly valued at N177,000 and expressly mentions an outstanding N8,000 debt.
The document also identifies the investigating officers as Inspector Adeboye Olaide and Inspector Akinteye Muinat.
The discrepancies have prompted questions about how the matter was handled from the initial dispute through police investigation and court proceedings.
Al-Amin’s family has alleged that they were asked to produce N100,000 for bail and another N70,000 for repairs to the allegedly damaged property. His father, Habeeb Mohammed, also accused officers at the station of refusing efforts by the family to resolve the matter amicably.
The family has maintained that Al-Amin denied damaging the phone and was distressed by his detention, arraignment and subsequent remand.
After his release from the Agodi Custodial Centre on September 14, his family said his behaviour changed significantly. He reportedly became withdrawn, ate little and repeatedly complained about the humiliation he believed he had suffered.
Three days after his release, on September 17, Al-Amin reportedly ingested rat poison at his residence in Ibadan. His family said he was eventually taken to the University College Hospital after several hospitals had declined to attend to him, but he died.
The case has now generated calls for an independent investigation into the conduct of the officers involved and the circumstances surrounding the prosecution.
Human rights advocates have also questioned whether the criminal justice process was used in connection with what began as a private financial dispute. They have pointed to provisions of the Police Act 2020 concerning the use of police powers in civil disputes and argued that the circumstances require transparent investigation.
The conflicting accounts have therefore shifted attention to the charge sheet, the police investigation and the treatment of the deceased while in custody.
For Al-Amin’s family, the central issue remains how an N8,000 disagreement escalated into police detention, court proceedings, imprisonment and ultimately a death that they believe could have been prevented.
Leave a comment