On February 21, 2024, Ms Kasarahchi Aniagolu, a reporter with The Whistler newspaper, was assaulted, arrested and detained by the anti-violent crime unit of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) while covering a raid by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Bureau de Change (BDC) operators in the Wuse Zone 4 Area of Abuja.
Narrating her ordeal in a series of WhatsApp chats, the journalist disclosed her arrest at 1:17 pm stating that she had been arrested and being held at the (Special Anti-Robbery Squad) SARS headquarters (FCT Anti-violence Crime Unit) for recording the raid on the BDC operators.
She added that she urgently needed help as she had been dealt with and wanted everyone to know that the Police were picking up BDC operators, and she was also picked up while she was about to video them.
She said: “They hit my phone and picked it up. They confiscated my laptop, and they are parading me like a criminal gang. They hit me and broke my ID pouch. Told me I will be killed and nothing will happen.”
Her arrest and detention were strongly condemned and there were urgent calls for her immediate and unconditional release as well as an unreserved apology from the authorities of the Nigeria Police Force.
She was released on the same day after spending eight hours in illegal detention at the Anti-Violence Crime Unit of the Nigeria Police Force in Guzape, Abuja.
