An alleged case of police brutality has ignited public outrage after a woman, identified as #torty\_mercy on X.com, shared details of her brother’s assault by a police officer near Wuse Market, Abuja.
In her account, she revealed that the incident occurred on Sunday while her brother was returning from church when the officer allegedly attacked him.
In the video she shared on Sunday, her brother said, “I’m just coming back from church at Wuse Market receiving a very big police assault. A policeman flogged me for over 30 minutes with a very big stick and I have injury on my leg, I can’t do anything, I can’t run.
“People gathered, without me involved in the matter, just a passenger in the vehicle. This is police headquarters, I came to lay complaint. Bruises are all over my body.”
Further detailing the incident, #torty_mercy wrote, “Nigerian Police has done it again! My brother was coming back from church, driver packed along Wuse Market junction, opposite Zenith Bank, a police officer approached the driver as he was about to move and started dragging the steering with him, people in the vehicle started pleading, this guy left the steering, came round the vehicle and spat on my brother sitting by the window unprovoked!
“My brother came down to ask him what he did to him, this guy carried a stick and started hitting him, his colleagues were asking him to stop but did absolutely nothing to stop or restrain him, instead they were asking my brother to run, someone who recently had an accident and can’t even walk fast.”
She claimed the police officer was under the influence of alcohol and questioned what could have happened if he had a gun with him.
“This police officer was smelling of alcohol and obviously didn’t act in his right mind,” she wrote. “What would have happened if he had a gun? We will record another loss from police in a space of days? Someone will go to church and come back injured or in a body bag because we are Nigerians?” She asked.
According to #torty_mercy, the officer also attempted to destroy her brother’s phone and repeatedly hit him on his injured leg.
She wrote, “This police man broke his glasses, repeatedly tried to smash his phone, hit him on his bad leg repeatedly. What is the life of a Nigerian worth? This hurts more than a heartbreak, I’m deeply hurt.
“A boy you saw who cannot run or resist, you kept hitting him, he told you he had an accident, you went ahead to hit the leg.”
The Police Public Relations Officer for the Federal Capital Territory, SP Josephine Adeh, stated that the officers involved in the incident have been identified and disciplinary actions are already underway.
“The officers have been identified and disciplinary proceedings have already commenced. The individual has also been contacted for more details,” Adeh wrote.