The Kwara state judicial panel of inquiry on the EndSARS protest continued its sitting on Wednesday, January 6, in Ilorin, the state capital.

Two petitioners narrated how they were tortured and humiliated by men of the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

The petitioners, Alhaji Kehinde Gobir and Alhaji Shuaib Jawando, who accused the SARS officers of the alleged high depth of impunity and human rights abuses, said they were arrested for alleged involvement on April 5, 2018, in Offa robbery incident.

The petitioners, who said they spent over 73 days in police detention in both Ilorin and Abuja, added that the police accused them of collecting guns from the former Senate president, Bukola Saraki, to allegedly participate in the robbery operation.Offa robbery: This is how we were threatened to implicate Saraki, Petitioners open up

Bukola Saraki . Credit: @bukolasaraki

They, however, denied being used by Saraki for criminal activities, telling the panel that they were tortured and subjected to dehumanising conditions in both Ilorin and Abuja police detentions.

The petitioners said they were only political supporters of the former Senate president, adding that the police threatened them to implicate Saraki during their alleged ordeal in detention.

They also accused the disbanded SARS officers of confiscating their property, which includes two Toyota Corolla, handsets and N250,000 collected before they were granted bail.

The petitioners said:

“In view of the foregoing and in the interest of justice, we urge your esteemed office to intervene swiftly to this situation by returning our property as this action is tantamount to infringement on the fundamental human rights to be enjoyed under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended.
The police counsel, Adekunle Iwalaye, in his response, urged the panel to dismiss the petitions in their entirety.“We did not participate in any crime nor involve in any Offa robbery killing or having any criminal records whatsoever as being wrongfully alleged by the SARS officers. We urge the panel to do the needful by facilitating the quick recovery of our property.”

The chairman of the panel, retired Justice Tunde Garba, later adjourned the matter to January 13, 2021.