The Nigeria Police Force has presented its account of a late-night encounter in Lagos following allegations by social media influencer Abike Raheem, popularly known as Papaya Ex, that she was assaulted by an officer.
Papaya Ex alleged during a TikTok live session on Friday that an officer attacked her in the Ajah area while she was returning from a movie set. She claimed the officer struck her in the face with a gun, assaulted her driver, touched her inappropriately, and seized her mobile phone. She also displayed what appeared to be injuries, adding that the alleged assault was not recorded due to network issues.
Responding on Saturday, police spokesperson Benjamin Hundeyin said the incident occurred “just before 2 am” when officers on night patrol stopped a vehicle carrying three men and two women for a routine search.
According to him, the influencer “bluntly refused” the search, saying, “You cannot search my car. Don’t you know Papaya? Even your bosses know me.”
Hundeyin said she opted to proceed to a police station, and after initially refusing, an officer entered her vehicle. He added that while her vehicle moved ahead with patrol officers following, she allegedly instructed her driver to speed off.
“At that rate, the patrol van was going to lose them. The police had to radio the patrol team far ahead to intercept them. Then the live began,” he said, noting that the Lagos State Police Command would provide further details.
Providing additional clarification, police spokesperson Abimbola Adebisi said a white Mercedes-Benz SUV carrying five occupants — two females and three males — had been stopped during a routine operation, but those inside could not provide satisfactory identification.
“One of them repeatedly stated, ‘I am Papaya X, even your bosses know me,’ but failed to present any valid identification or offer verifiable details,” she said.
Adebisi said officers directed the occupants to proceed to Ajah Police Station for proper identification and documentation, with an assistant superintendent joining the SUV while other officers followed.
“However, upon leaving the scene, the driver suddenly sped off in an apparent attempt to evade the Police. The vehicle was subsequently intercepted through the swift intervention of personnel from Langbasa Police Division at another checkpoint around Addo Roundabout.
“The viral video being circulated was recorded after the vehicle had been successfully stopped at the second checkpoint,” she added.
Police said the matter remains under investigation and that further updates will be communicated.
