The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ibadan branch, has called for an immediate and thorough investigation into the alleged physical assault and unlawful detention of one of its members, Oluwatope Olaniyan, by officers of the Olohunda Aba Police Division in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The NBA branch chairman, Mr Ibrahim Lawal, in a petition addressed to the state’s Commissioner of Police, condemned the incident in strong terms, urging the command to take urgent disciplinary action against the officers involved, led by one Inspector Benjamin Alolo.
“We write your office to cause an investigation to be undertaken into the incident of an unprofessional act levelled against some policemen attached to the Olohunda Aba Police Division, Ibadan, under your command. We do this in the fervent hope that a prompt action will be taken to redress this alleged bestial abuse of authority,” the statement read.
It further explained that Olaniyan, a legal practitioner with 14 years post-call experience, was brutally assaulted, stripped naked and unlawfully detained by armed police officers during a raid on his community at Lakuru, Idiape/Olounda, at about 2am on July 6, 2025.
The raid, reportedly led by Inspector Alolo, was described as a gestapo-style operation marked by sporadic gunfire that threw residents into panic.
“Residents were woken to the sounds of sporadic gunshots, a situation which impelled suspicion of an untoward event.
“A palpable fear descended on the community as the shooting continued for several minutes.
“Olaniyan, who approached the officers in his capacity as a legal practitioner to question the legality of the arrests and searches, was allegedly assaulted on the spot.
“He had approached the said Benjamin Alolo and other officers at the scene, including one Akeem, to know the reason for the arrest and why the police put the whole neighbourhood under fear,” Lawal noted.
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