The Oyo State Police Command has denied claims that Al-Amin Mohammed, a student who later died by suicide, was arrested and prosecuted over an outstanding ₦8,000 debt to a Point-of-Sale operator.
The Punch reported that the Command said Mohammed was instead charged with assault and malicious damage following an alleged attack on the female POS operator and the destruction of her Airtel SIM registration machine valued at ₦177,000.
Mohammed died on September 17, three days after he was released from the Agodi Correctional Centre.
His family had earlier alleged that he was arrested and taken to court over an ₦8,000 debt owed to the POS operator.
In a statement on Saturday, the Command described the report that Mohammed was detained over the debt as “false, unfounded and misleading.”
“The Command wishes to categorically state that the narrative is false, unfounded and misleading, as it does not represent the circumstances of the case or the basis upon which the suspect was charged to court,” the statement said.
According to the police, investigation showed that Mohammed approached the POS operator to collect ₦23,000 in cash, intending to transfer the same amount to her through a POS transaction.
“The complainant obliged and handed the suspect the said sum in cash. However, immediately after collecting the money, the suspect left the scene without effecting the intended transfer or returning the money.
“Following persistent efforts, the suspect eventually refunded ₦15,000, leaving an outstanding balance of ₦8,000, which he subsequently refused to pay. Consequently, the complainant took possession of the suspect’s mobile phone pending the refund of the outstanding ₦8,000,” the Command said.
The police alleged that Mohammed later went to the complainant’s residence on September 8, 2026, where he assaulted her and damaged her Airtel SIM registration machine.
“Rather than settle the outstanding balance, the suspect subsequently stormed the residence of the complainant on 8 September 2026 at about 2200hrs, where he assaulted her and, in the course of the assault, damaged her Airtel SIM registration machine valued at ₦177,000,” the statement said.
However, Mohammed’s family gave a different account, with his mother telling PUNCH that he went to the complainant’s residence to retrieve his phone after it had allegedly been seized over the ₦8,000 dispute.
She also denied that her son damaged the complainant’s property.
The police said members of the community subsequently intervened in an attempt to settle the dispute before vigilantes took both Mohammed and the complainant to the police station.
“Following the incident, members of the community intervened in an effort to resolve the matter between the parties.
However, the intervention proved unsuccessful, and the suspect was thereafter handed over to vigilantes, who brought him to the Police Station alongside the complainant.
“Upon receiving the parties, the Police heard from both sides and made a further effort to resolve the matter amicably. However, that intervention also proved unsuccessful, as the complainant insisted on pursuing the case in court,” the Command said.
The police stressed that the ₦8,000 debt was not the reason Mohammed was prosecuted, maintaining that the charges were based on the alleged assault and damage to the SIM registration machine.
“Accordingly, having regard to the facts established during investigation and the evidence available, the suspect was charged to court for assault and malicious damage, and not for the outstanding ₦8,000.
“The distinction is important, as the criminal proceedings arose from the assault and the damage to the SIM registration machine valued at ₦177,000,” the Command said.
The Command also rejected claims that Mohammed remained in custody because he was unable to repay the debt.
It said the court granted him bail after his arraignment, but he remained at the Agodi Correctional Centre because he could not immediately meet the conditions attached to his release.
“Upon arraignment, the court considered the facts and evidence presented and granted the suspect bail. His subsequent remand at the Agodi Correctional Centre resulted from his inability to immediately meet the bail conditions imposed by the court, and not from any Police decision to detain him over the ₦8,000.
“He was subsequently released upon meeting the conditions,” the statement said.
The family had earlier said Mohammed was distressed by his arrest and detention and complained about being taken to court over the dispute.
They also maintained that the matter should have been resolved without prosecution.
The police, however, said the complainant insisted on pursuing the case after attempts to settle the matter failed.
The Command further cautioned against linking Mohammed’s death directly to the police case without established evidence.
“As regards the reported death of the suspect, the Command considers it inappropriate to draw a causal connection between the Police case and the reported death without verified facts establishing such a link.
“The circumstances surrounding the death should therefore be determined through appropriate investigation and established evidence, rather than through an inaccurate or incomplete narrative,” the Command said.
The police reiterated that although ₦8,000 remained outstanding from the initial transaction, the debt did not form the basis of the criminal proceedings.
“In view of these facts, the claim that the Police arrested and charged the suspect to court because of his inability to repay ₦8,000 is false, unfounded and misleading.
“While the ₦8,000 constituted the outstanding balance in the antecedent financial transaction, it was not the basis of the criminal charge before the court,” the statement said.
