The Lagos State Police Command says it has launched an investigation into a police officer captured in a viral video while attempting to arrest a bus conductor in the Ikorodu area of the state.
The footage depicts a police officer in a camouflage uniform grappling with a partially undressed conductor inside a bus.
The officer appears to hold the conductor’s groin area tightly, while passengers intervene, shouting pleas like “Leave this boy,” and the conductor shouts, “Police, don kill me.”
Some bystanders condemn the officer’s actions, with one passenger seemingly pushing him away.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Abimbola Adebisi, said the incident stemmed from an operation in which officers and personnel of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority were allegedly obstructed by a commercial bus driver and his conductor.
According to the command, the driver had “deliberately used the bus to obstruct traffic flow and thereby prevented other road users from using the public way and also caused traffic gridlock in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State, causing serious untold hardship to the public.
“It was in the process of arresting the conductor that he stripped himself to evade arrest and escape from the scene, and that was when the video was shot.”
The statement added that “Notwithstanding the behaviour of the conductor resulting in the ugly confusion seen in the video, the police officer has been identified and is currently being investigated to determine the appropriateness of his actions.”
Adebisi said that the conductor has been contacted and is expected to appear before the Commissioner of Police on Monday for an interview.
She added that the bus involved has also been impounded and is now in police custody.
Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Jimoh, urged Lagos residents to remain law-abiding and promptly report any violation of their rights by police personnel, assuring that “justice will be done and shortcomings will be redressed.”
He warned, however, that “unnecessary dramatisation against the police officer seen in the video is not acceptable under the law.”
The CP reminded the public that resisting lawful arrest is a criminal offence.
The command reiterated its commitment to transparency and accountability, saying the outcome of the investigation will be made public.
