Family Accuses Kaduna Policemen Of Torturing Their Son To Death And Dumping His Body In The Bush

The family of a 27 year old undergraduate of the Kaduna State Polytechnic,Benjamin Wankaa, 27, have accused some policemen attached to the Sabon Gari police division, Kaduna state of torturing him to death and dumping his body in a bush.

The police had stopped Wankaa also known as MC Cedar, on his way from a party at a checkpoint at Magangi Gari area of the town. Trouble started when a cousin of the student who was in the car reportedly spoke rudely to the policemen.

Wankaa was said to have tried to stop the policemen from manhandling his cousin. While other occupants of the car were taken to the station in a police van, Wankaa was detained at the checkpoint. That was the last time he was seen alive.

According to PUNCH, his mutilated corpse was later found in a bush..

The family said the incident happened on Friday but they were not informed until Sunday. They claimed they were made to sign a case closure form before Wankaa’s cousin and others detained by the police were released.

The Family also alleged that the Sabon Gari Divisional Police Officer threatened to deal with any family member or friends of Benjamin that talked about the incident.

A relative of the victim, who claimed to have seen the corpse, said there were injuries on the body adding that his head and limbs were broken.

She said;

“He was with some classmates, including a lady. The lady, who is our cousin, spoke to the policemen anyhow and they started harassing her. My brother then interfered and that was how the problem started. 

“Some of the policemen took our cousin and other people in the car away because they could speak Hausa; they left Benjamin behind with other cops. 

“His corpse, which I saw, was mutilated. His head, hands and two legs were broken. He was tortured to death. The police have refused to disclose what happened to us.”

Wankaa’s mother was shocked to learn that he was tortured to death.

“I called his telephone number, but it rang out. By 10am, the line was no longer reachable until on Sunday when my family was bombarded with calls. We were initially told that he went missing. They later said he was dead,” Wankaa’s mother said.

A lawyer with Joints Legal Action Aids, a non-governmental organisation, Fisayo Okeboyejo, demanded an investigation into the death of the victim.

Okeboyejo said from available evidence, Benjamin was murdered in cold blood.

“The Nigeria Police Force claimed that Benjamin was found dead along the highway, with some parts of his body broken, especially his legs and hands, which indicated that there might have been torture and brutality on the innocent young man.”