Nigerian police force
Brother arrested for having tattoos. Mary, the younger sister of a suspected cultist, Oduyiga Seyi, who purportedly died in the custody of the Ogun State Police Command, has accused officers of arresting the suspect because he had tattoos on his body.
Oduyiga, a father of three who was apprehended in Sagamu on Saturday, November 18, was allegedly tortured to death by command agents.
The 39-year-old barber’s arrest was reported to be related to the frequent cult conflicts in Sagamu, which have recently claimed more than 15 lives.
According to PUNCH Online, the State Police Command disputed the claim that he was tortured to death in their holding facility on Sunday.
His younger sister, Mary, stated that the victim was out charging his phone near his home in Atoyo, Sagamu, when he was apprehended on November 18.
According to Mary, despite his denial, Seyi was accused of being a cult member.
She said the police justified his detention by pointing to tattoos on his body.
“On Saturday, November 18, around 5 p.m., my brother went out to charge his phone around his house on the same street,” Mary explained.
“There was no power.” He went to charge his phone when a neighbor turned on a generator. His residence is at Atoyo, Sagamu. He sat under a tree in front of the home, charging his phone, and removed his clothes owing to the heat.
“When he saw a patrol team, he attempted to flee but fell down and was arrested.” He and one other individual were transported to the Awolowo police station.
“The police accused him of belonging to a cult, which he denied. They photographed him.
“The police said he couldn’t be released because he had tattoos on his body that said Psalm 23.”
“He wrote a Bible verse on his body and drew the two hands of Jesus supplicating on his chest with the inscription ‘Only God can judge me.'” He also scribbled on his neck, ‘The day I will never forget,’ on April 7, 2014.
“We later pleaded for his release, but he was not released.” They released the other person arrested, stating that the other one would be released because he did not have tattoos on his body,” the sister said.
She claimed that the police rebuffed all attempts to gain bail for Seyi.
Mary stated that the family was startled to learn that Seyi died in police custody on Friday.
She continued, “After some hours, I lost my patience, went back to the policewoman, and pleaded to be allowed to see him and give him the food. She consented and led us back to the cells. Some inmates said he had been taken out since morning. We later called upstairs to meet the Deputy Commissioner.
“We had no idea he was about to bring the awful news to us; he then stated, “Your boy was misbehaving in the cell overnight; he was biting the inmates, talking to himself; he was acting like he’d gone insane.” They took him to the hospital, and when he arrived, he gave up.
“When we arrived at the mortuary, we saw blood on his body; we saw some bloody holes; they had even stitched the area.” I was perplexed that the cops could place our man in a mortuary and embalm him without our knowledge.
“It means there’s something fishy going on.” It might suggest he was poisoned; they could have smashed his head with a pistol butt; I noticed injuries on his body. I noticed injuries on his back; he bled; and I noticed blood in his eyes. He passed away on Friday.
“However, on Friday, November 24th, at approximately 0500 hours, Seyi went berserk, shouting, biting with his teeth, and assaulting other suspects in the cell until he became exhausted.” Other suspects in the cell informed on-duty cops.
“He was taken to the police hospital and later to Ijaye General Hospital Abeokuta, where he gave bites in the cell for medical treatment against infection, along with other suspects.” Other suspects were treated and released, but Seyi died while receiving medical attention.
“Every other allegation is hereby refuted, as the correct position is stated above.”