A keke driver has shared his harrowing experience of spending nearly a year in prison due to a pair of slippers worn by his friend.
Wisdom Elijah, who was working in Port Harcourt and using a keke he acquired through hire purchase, was arrested on January 6, 2024, and was released on December 3, 2024.
He recounted that after finishing his workday, he agreed to drop off some friends who were heading to a party. On his way back, his tricycle ran out of fuel, prompting him to take a keg and ask a friend to accompany him to buy fuel from a nearby seller.
Following their purchase, his friend, whose slippers had broken, decided to leave his old pair behind and wear a different pair he found at the front of the seller’s house. Wisdom expressed that he was unaware of this change until the seller confronted them.
Despite their explanations and pleas, the seller accused them of theft, and when her husband arrived, they called the police. Wisdom and his friend were arrested upon the officers’ arrival.
Initially thinking it was a minor issue that would be resolved quickly, Wisdom was stunned when they were charged in court. They were granted bail, but one of the conditions required them to pay N80,000. As they waited to fulfill this requirement, court proceedings ended for the day, and they were subsequently taken to prison.
While his friend’s family managed to raise the funds for his bail after three days, Wisdom was left without anyone to call for assistance and had no means to pay the N80,000 or arrange for a surety. Moreover, he was unable to access a phone while in custody, leaving him trapped for months.
He described his time in the worst cell, where food and water were scarce.
Since his release, videos of Wisdom have surfaced, depicting him looking emaciated in a hospital setting while a healthcare professional checks his vitals. He did not disclose how he ultimately secured his release from prison.
