TheNation reported that Murtala Salami’s ordeal in the hands of policemen last year has continued to traumatise him. Precisely in October, 2019, the clearing agent, who works in Apapa Port, Lagos, got an Infinix
Hot 4 phone from a phone technician, identified simply as Yusuf, several months after he gave Yusuf an Infinix Hot 6 phone to fix. The problem with the phone he gave Yusuf to repair was intractable, hence, the technician gave him a similar phone as a temporary replacement pending the time he would find solutions to his phone. Murtala, who had by then bought a new phone, simply gave the replacement phone to his wife, but few weeks later,
policemen from Alakara Division in Ojoo area of Ibadan, Oyo State, tracked the phone to his wife, while Murtala had gone to work. His wife was arrested and detained at Ikotun Police Station, Lagos. She was freed in the evening after her husband got to the station, while he was in turn held and transferred to Alakara Police Station in Ibadan.
But before Murtala was moved to Ibadan, he was first taken to Yusuf’s house in the neighborhood but the technician, on sighting his customer’s hands cuffed, bolted without a trace.
The young clearing agent was consequently detained for six months at the police division in Ibadan. Within the six days he spent there, he claimed the policemen extorted him to the tune of N160, 000 which the minions claimed was meant for his bail and logistics. The money, according to him, was withdrawn from his Access Bank account through a POS machine the policemen brought to him in the cell.
