Oyo Police Deny Debt Arrest Claims in Student's Suicide

The Oyo State Police Command has refuted claims that Al-Amin Mohammed was arrested for an ₦8,000 debt prior to his suicide on September 17. The police clarified that he was charged with assault and malicious damage after allegedly attacking a female Point-of-Sale operator and damaging her Airtel SIM registration machine worth ₦177,000.

The police stated that Mohammed had initially borrowed ₦23,000 from the operator but left without completing a transaction or returning the money, leading to a dispute over the remaining ₦8,000. Following community intervention, he was handed over to vigilantes and subsequently taken to the police station.

The police described the family's claims regarding the debt as “false, unfounded and misleading.” Mohammed's mother contended that he was only trying to retrieve his phone, which had been seized due to the debt dispute, and denied any property damage.