How Policemen Detained Me, Seized My Vehicle After I Was Assaulted By Lawmaker, Alex Ikwechegh; Bolt Driver Narrates
The bolt driver who was assaulted by a member of the House of Representatives, Alex Ikwechegh in a viral video has narrated how the Nigeria Police Force detained him and seized his car after the incident.
The video on social media had captured the lawmaker brutalising the driver who went to his (the lawmaker) residence in Abuja for delivery.
Ikewechegh represents Ohaji/Egbema/Oguta/Oru West Federal Constituency in Imo State.
The lawmaker slapped the driver three times and hurled insults at him for asking him (lawmaker) to come to his car to collect what he (the driver) was there to deliver. Ikwechegh also threatened to make the driver disappear from Nigeria, saying nothing would happen if he did.
The lawmaker refused to pay the driver and boasted that he is a member of the House of Representatives. He broke the driver’s phone and tore his clothes for “disrespecting” him.
He also threatened to beat the driver and lock him in his generator house to make him suffer.
Speaking in a video uploaded by a social media personality, Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, on Monday, the assaulted driver narrated how operatives of Nigeria Police Force sided with the lawmkaer without proper investigation.
He said he was detained for more than two hours while the second party was allowed to go because he is a politician.
The driver narrated: “After the video, he called some police officers, I don’t know the division they are assigned to. And then they bundled me to the station. I wanted to drive the car, but they said no, I should not drive. Two sat beside me and I was in their middle. When they took me to the station, they said we should go inside. I had calls but they did not allow me to take my calls. Then they (senior officials in the station) asked what happened, they did not ask me but instead, they asked the policemen.
“They quickly said I went to the Honourable’s house to fight him. I just kept mute. I have not shown anyone the videos at that time. Even the security man who came as a witness had not seen the videos at that time. They now referred us to crime department inside the station, that we should go to crime. The man (in charge) said he could not hear from one side, other person had to come.
“He has to give his own side of the story. They now said they should go and bring the man. The security man now called him and passed the phone to the IPO that was in charge of the case. The IPO was now talking with him on the phone and stepped out of the office where we were. After some time, he came back and said he wanted to go and do some investigation at the honourable’s house. So they left me at the station, Maitama Police Station.
“It happened within Maitama. They kept me for over two hours. I was at the counter, they kept me behind the counter. And after two hours plus, the IPO came back and then he was like “Why did I record the video?” The IPO was now trying to change the narrative. I now asked him; was there any part of the law that said I should not take videos, I said he was becoming a threat to me and I had to take evidence so that people would know where I am.
“At this time, the honourable was not there (at the station). He was at home. So they now gave me a form to fill to write my own statement as to what happened. As I was writing, the honourable now came, when he came he started talking and he was shouting. Even at the police station, he was calling me names. I was just looking at him. My colleagues were talking to him, but me, I had already had my own full trauma. I don’t want to actually have any engagement with him again.
“I just went to one corner and sat down. And I was listening to everything he was saying. All the names he was calling me: ‘You common bolt driver, You are poor man, you have pride in your poor.” So I said the problem you have now is a ‘poor man can not speak. I said I am a Nigerian and I should not be treated as a foreigner in this country. I left the station about so minutes to 3 am or so. My car is still at the station. The police collected my car and I left the station this morning.
“The police did not detain the honourable member, they let him go.”
