Family and Police Disagree Over Treatment of Minor in Kwara

Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.

The Kwara State Police Command has strongly refuted allegations that its officers unlawfully detained a 14‑year‑old girl for several days in a police cell, insisting that the minor was only invited for questioning about her alleged role as a lookout for a suspected thief and was released the same day to her parents. The controversy erupted over the weekend when the girl’s mother took to social media, accusing officers at the Oke‑Oyi divisional headquarters in Ilorin of locking up her daughter arbitrarily, demanding money, and refusing to produce the teenager for over 48 hours. The police responded swiftly on Monday, May 4, 2026, issuing a detailed statement that contradicted every major claim made by the family. According to the command’s spokesperson, DSP Ejire‑Adeyemi Toun, the minor was invited to the station on Friday, May 1, at about 3 p.m. after a community complaint linked her to a burglary suspect who had been arrested separately. The girl answered questions in the presence of her mother, who was called immediately and arrived at the station by 4 p.m. The questioning lasted just over an hour, after which the minor was released without any charges, according to the police.

The mother, however, tells a very different story. In a now‑viral Facebook post, the woman identified simply as Mrs. Adebayo claimed that her daughter was picked up by policemen on a motorcycle on Friday morning and that she spent the next two days searching frantically for her child. “They said she was helping a thief to hide stolen goods. My daughter is only 14. She doesn’t even know any thief. When I went to the station, they told me to bring money. I begged. I sold my phone. They still did not release her,” the mother wrote. She alleged that she only saw her daughter again on Sunday evening, when the girl was brought out looking weak and disheveled. The post was shared hundreds of times, attracting the attention of local human rights groups and journalists. The police, sensing a public relations disaster, moved to counter the narrative immediately.

In a press briefing on Monday morning, DSP Ejire‑Adeyemi provided what she called a minute‑by‑minute account of the incident. She explained that a suspect identified as Mr. Dele Bamidele was arrested on Thursday, April 30, in connection with a breaking and entering case at a provision store in the Oke‑Oyi community. During interrogation, Bamidele reportedly named the minor as someone who had helped him carry away some of the stolen items, acting as a lookout while he broke the lock. Based on that information, officers proceeded to the girl’s home on Friday morning. “The minor was politely requested to accompany police to the station for clarification. Her mother was not at home at the time, so a neighbor was informed. The mother was contacted by phone around 2 p.m., and she arrived at the station by 4 p.m.,” the spokesperson stated. She insisted that the girl was never detained, that she was never locked in any cell, and that she was released into her mother’s custody by 5:30 p.m. on the same day.

To back up her claim, the police spokesperson produced a release form dated May 1, signed by the mother, acknowledging the return of her daughter. She also read from the station’s Occurrence Book, which recorded the invitation, the questioning, and the release. “There is no evidence whatsoever that this minor was held unlawfully. No money was demanded or collected. Anyone who claims otherwise should come forward with proof,” DSP Ejire‑Adeyemi added. She accused the mother of exaggerating and perhaps even fabricating the story to gain sympathy or extort the police. “We are the ones being defamed here. We have a duty to investigate crimes, even when they involve young persons. We did so with utmost care and adherence to the child protection laws,” she said.

But the mother has refused to back down. In a follow‑up video posted on Monday morning, she doubled down on her allegations, insisting that her daughter was held for two nights. “They are lying. They have paper. Anyone can write anything. I am not educated, but I know my child. She came home looking like she had not eaten. She was crying. She said they kept her in a dark place,” the mother said, weeping. She challenged the police to produce the CCTV footage from their station, arguing that the truth would be clear. Local journalists who visited the Oke‑Oyi division on Monday reported that the station does not have functional CCTV cameras, a fact the police did not deny.

The case has now attracted the attention of the National Human Rights Commission, which has dispatched a fact‑finding team to Ilorin. The commission’s spokesperson confirmed to Stone Reporters News that investigators are speaking with both the family and the police, and that a report would be issued within the week. The Nigeria Police Force’s national headquarters in Abuja has also taken note of the incident, with the Inspector‑General of Police directing the Kwara State Commissioner to submit a detailed report within 48 hours. Meanwhile, the teenager has been taken to a hospital for independent medical evaluation, at the insistence of child rights advocates who accompanied the family. The results of that evaluation are still pending.

Behind the dueling narratives lies a deeper crisis of trust between the police and the communities they serve. Across Nigeria, allegations of arbitrary detention, extortion, and the mistreatment of minors are common, but convictions of abusive officers are rare. Rights groups have long called for the installation of cameras in all police stations and for mandatory legal representation for minors brought in for questioning. In this case, neither was present. The girl answered questions without a lawyer, and there is no video record of what transpired. The truth, as is often the case, may lie somewhere between the police log and the mother’s tears. For the people of Oke‑Oyi, what matters now is not who wins the argument, but what happens to the next child who is picked up on suspicion. Will there be a lawyer? Will the mother be called promptly? Will the cell doors stay shut? Until those questions are answered, every police station remains a place where a minor can disappear, even if only in the fearful imagination of a parent.

Stone Reporters News will continue to follow this story as more facts emerge.

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