The Elegant Nurses Forum (ENF) has raised alarm over shocking allegations involving the arrest, detention, and extortion of a young nurse in Osun State, calling for urgent investigations into what they describe as “a serious abuse of power.”
According to ENF, the nurse, who was undergoing her speciality programme at the School of Mental Health/Psychiatric Nursing, Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, was allegedly targeted after speaking out online about romance scams.
She reportedly warned other young women to be cautious of men who exploit emotions and false promises for financial gain.
“The Nigerian Police Force is meant to protect citizens, not to be used against them,” said Nurse Thomas Abiodun Olamide, National Coordinator of ENF.
The matter centres on a man identified as Adeleke, based in Osogbo, Osun State, who is accused of luring women via social media with fabricated stories and false promises. Several women allegedly lost money to him, with one claiming he was already married despite presenting himself as single.
The nurse, after sharing her experience online, reportedly received threats from Adeleke, who allegedly vowed to release her private pictures if she did not delete her posts.
When she refused, police officers allegedly led by Superintendent Ayobami came to her training hospital in Lagos, detained her without a warrant, and transferred her to Osogbo.
The nurse claims she was held in a police cell for four days, denied access to her family, and later forced at gunpoint to record apology videos. She further alleges that ₦1 million was extorted from her relatives, with ₦250,000 allegedly handed to Adeleke and the rest kept by police as “bail money.”
“Why was a nurse who spoke out about an alleged scammer arrested, detained, and allegedly forced to apologise, while the person she accused was allegedly given money by the same officers?” ENF asked in its statement. “It looks like there may have been collusion between the alleged scammer and some officers. This must be investigated openly.”
The ENF has demanded immediate independent investigation by the Inspector-General of Police, identification and questioning of all officers involved, full accounting of the alleged ₦1 million extorted, urgent intervention by the National Human Rights Commission and women’s rights groups, and protection for the nurse and other health workers from intimidation.
The group insists that nurses “are not easy targets” and warned that if such abuses can happen to a nurse in a government hospital, “then who is safe?”
“A uniform is not a license to intimidate. A gun is not a tool for forcing people. Police custody is not a place for torture or shame,” Olamide declared. “Enough is enough. Nurses must be protected, not persecuted. Women must be protected, not silenced.”
