Police probe alleged N3m extortion attempt by Tactical Squad officers in Lagos

The Lagos State Police Command has launched a formal investigation into allegations that operatives from the Onikan Police Station Tactical Squad attempted to extort N3 million from a resident at gunpoint.

The complainant, identified on X (formerly Twitter) as Boluwatife (@Tife_badass), alleged that the incident occurred around 1 a.m. on Thursday while he and a friend were driving from Lekki to Victoria Island for an artiste’s event.

In a detailed account on social media, Boluwatife claimed that about five armed officers intercepted him near the Lekki–Ikoyi Link Bridge roundabout.

According to him, the officers cocked their rifles, forcibly removed him from the driver’s seat, and accused him of killing policemen in Lekki.

He alleged that he was handcuffed alongside his friend, placed in a police Hilux van, and taken to the station while officers drove his car separately.

At Onikan Police Station, he said, officers ordered him to remove his shirt, shoes, and socks in preparation for detention. They allegedly searched his car and documents but found nothing incriminating.

“Two hours later, they demanded N3 million,” he wrote. “I refused, and after more pressure, they reduced it to N500,000. They returned my phone, and I quickly contacted my people for help. Thankfully, I was rescued.”

Boluwatife also alleged that the officers threatened to frame him as a fraudster and cultist when he refused to comply, and even threatened to shoot him multiple times.

“I’m not shaken, but what about the common man who has nobody? They said all sorts of things to me. Ten police officers threatening you for no reason is just wild,” he wrote.

Reacting to the allegations on Thursday, Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, stated on X that the state’s police leadership had ordered a full investigation.

“The Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Jimoh, has summoned all the officers to the Command Headquarters in Ikeja and directed the Deputy Commissioner of Police, State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, to investigate the complaint. The public will be updated on the outcome,” Hundeyin said.