Lagos Barber Dies After 28 Days In Police Custody, Family Alleges Torture
A Lagos barber has died after reportedly suffering severe physical abuse during 28 days in police detention, with his family demanding an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.
Babajide Adelowo reportedly died a day after his release from custody, where he had been held over suspected possession of firearms.
His relatives accused operatives of the Lagos State Police Command’s X-Squad of torturing him throughout his detention, leaving him critically ill and unable to walk or perform basic activities without assistance.
According to PUNCH Metro, the officers arrested Adelowo at his barbing shop in Iba Estate, Iyana-Iba, on October 6 and released him on Tuesday, November 3.
His family maintained that the police found no firearms during a search of his business premises but allegedly took away several personal belongings, including a generator and chairs.
Speaking about the arrest, the deceased’s uncle, Samson Adelowo, said the officers searched virtually every part of the shop, including breaking through the ceiling and opening the water tank, without discovering any weapon.
He questioned why items unrelated to the firearm allegation were removed and accused the officers of denying the barber access to his phone and restricting contact with his relatives.
The family reportedly hired lawyers to secure his release, but Samson said they were permitted to see him only two or three times during the entire period of detention.
He further claimed that officers threatened Adelowo’s wife with arrest when she attempted to visit her husband.
The uncle also accused the police team of extorting N50,000 from the estate chairman, who accompanied the lawyers to meet the officers. According to him, the chairman was threatened with detention before paying the money to regain his freedom.
Samson said the estate chairman had tried to explain that Adelowo was a peaceful resident who also served as one of the community’s security officers, but his intervention did not change the officers’ attitude.
However, what happened during the barber’s final days in detention would become even more disturbing when he was eventually returned to his family.
His wife, Mariam, said she was shocked by his physical condition when police officers brought him to PWD bus stop and transferred him into the family’s vehicle.
She recalled that her husband was extremely weak, pale and barely able to walk, forcing the officers to support him as they handed him over.
The officers reportedly instructed the family to take him directly to a hospital and provided a referral note from the Federal Medical Centre, Ebute Meta, alongside a bag containing medical supplies, including drips and plaster.
Mariam said her husband disagreed with the suggestion that his condition resulted from an existing illness, insisting that he had not experienced the symptoms before his arrest.
During the journey to the hospital, Adelowo reportedly began explaining what he had endured inside the detention facility.
According to his wife, he told her that officers repeatedly tied his hands and legs to a weightlifting rod before suspending him in the air for between 30 and 40 minutes.
He reportedly said the punishment was carried out three times. He also described how an instrument was used to squeeze his hands, leaving his muscles and veins severely affected.
The injuries and weakness allegedly became so severe that he could no longer feed himself or attend to his personal hygiene. Other detainees reportedly had to assist him with eating and bathing.
Mariam further disclosed that her husband told her he had fainted on four occasions while in custody.
She said the final incident happened after fellow detainees raised an alarm over his condition. When he regained consciousness, he reportedly discovered that his body and clothes were covered in blood and faeces.
According to the widow, police officers eventually took him to the hospital on the Sunday preceding his release, two days before he was handed over to the family.
Adelowo managed to contact her from the hospital but abruptly ended the call, after which she could no longer reach him.
When the family eventually received him, Mariam noticed that he was wearing different clothes. He reportedly explained that his original clothes had become soaked in blood, prompting the police to provide replacements.
The family subsequently took him for further medical attention, where he received a blood transfusion.
His condition, however, continued to deteriorate. Mariam said he began vomiting blood and struggling to breathe.
Samson disclosed that doctors informed the family that Adelowo needed six pints of blood. They managed to secure just one pint before his condition became critical.
The widow also recounted another disturbing detail her husband shared about the circumstances of his arrest.
According to her, a fellow detainee had identified Adelowo to the police as someone who kept firearms. The man later apologised to him in detention, claiming that he had been instructed to identify him.
The deceased, who was the father of one child, was described by his wife as a devoted husband who shouldered virtually all the family’s financial responsibilities.
Mariam said his prolonged detention forced her to assume responsibilities she had never previously handled, while their young son repeatedly asked when his father would return home.
She said she continued reassuring the child that his father would come back, only for the boy to see his body after his death.
The family is now demanding justice, accusing the police of abandoning Adelowo after releasing him in a critical condition.
Mariam said neither she nor the family’s lawyer received any follow-up communication from the police to establish whether he had recovered or needed further assistance.
She insisted that the authorities must explain why a man who reportedly entered police custody without a known serious medical condition was released in such a deteriorated state.
A medical report dated November 5, 2026, from the hospital where Adelowo received treatment provides further details about his final medical emergency.
The document, addressed to the Head of Pathology at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, stated that he was brought to the facility on November 3 with bleeding, vomiting of blood, abdominal pain, severe body weakness and anaemia.
Medical personnel described him as acutely ill, lethargic, pale and dehydrated, with mild tenderness around his navel.
Following examination, doctors assessed his condition as symptomatic anaemia resulting from upper and lower gastrointestinal bleeding, complicated by haemorrhagic shock.
The report stated that he was admitted, blood samples were collected and treatment commenced.
Although Adelowo received one pint of blood without complications, his condition worsened while preparations were being made to administer another pint.
He reportedly began convulsing and vomiting. Although those symptoms subsided temporarily, his oxygen level dropped, prompting doctors to administer supplemental oxygen and arrange his transfer to a tertiary healthcare facility.
About an hour later, he began gasping for breath, forcing medical personnel to commence cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
The resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful, and he was subsequently pronounced dead. His relative was then informed of the development.
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Coordinator of the Take It Back Movement, Adekunle Taofeek, has called on the Inspector-General of Police and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to initiate an independent investigation into the case.
The group wants the arrest, detention, alleged torture and eventual death of Adelowo thoroughly investigated, with any officers found responsible for misconduct identified and prosecuted.
It specifically demanded an investigation into officers attached to the CP-X Squad over allegations of unlawful detention, extortion, physical abuse and denial of adequate medical attention.
The movement also called for an independent autopsy involving the deceased’s family to establish the actual cause of death and determine whether physical injuries or delayed medical intervention contributed to the tragedy.
It further urged the authorities to investigate the alleged demand for N10m and the collection of N50,000 from the estate chairman.
The group also demanded the recovery of the generator, chairs and other belongings reportedly taken from the deceased’s barbing shop.
Additionally, it called for measures to protect the widow, other relatives and witnesses from intimidation, while demanding appropriate compensation if police liability is established.
The movement maintained that an accusation of criminal involvement cannot justify torture or degrading treatment, stressing that every suspect is entitled to lawful investigation and prosecution.
It said Adelowo’s death had left behind a grieving wife, young children and ageing parents who deserved answers about what happened to him.
However, the Lagos State Police Command has disputed the family’s account of events.
When contacted on Sunday, the command’s spokesperson, Abimbola Adebisi, denied that Adelowo was tortured in police custody.
She said the command would release an official statement on the matter the following day.
(Source: Punch Newspapers)
