Police accused of torturing man to death in Bauchi

The family of a 33-year-old man, Dauda Danladi, has accused the Bauchi State Police Command of torturing him to death while in their custody.

Younger sister of the deceased, Dorathy Danladi, said the deceased was arrested by a combined team of police operatives and vigilantes attached to the Yelwa Division, a suburb of Bauchi metropolis, and taken to custody by the police.

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She said the deceased was arrested while in his shop alongside some other young men who were playing snooker in the area, adding that the family was not told the offence the deceased committed.

According to her, they were surprised to later learn that their brother and breadwinner of the family died in custody under questionable circumstances.

“They have refused to give us his corpse. We want them to give us his corpse so that we can confirm what they are saying because we know that when they arrested him last night Thursday, he was hale and hearty,” she said.

She therefore, called on the Inspector General of Police and the Commissioner of Police in Bauchi to ensure thorough investigation into the matter and bring all those responsible for the death of their brother to justice.

When contacted, the Bauchi State Police Command said the police received a distress call about a person who had slumped and was gasping for breath.

“Police rushed to the scene and met the victim who was later identified as Dauda surname yet unknown, lying unconscious and reasonably suspected to have an asthmatic attack and was quickly evacuated by the patrol team to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH) for medical attention where he was unfortunately certified dead by a Medical Doctor,” the police command said.

The Command’s Public Relation Officer, Ahmed Wakil, in a statement yesterday said that the Commissioner of Police in the state, Abiodun Sylvester Alabi, has ordered for a discreet investigation including autopsy to ascertain the actual circumstances surrounding the incident after which the outcome shall be made public.