Afrobeat musician Seun Kuti risks up to three years imprisonment if found guilty of assault against a yet-to-be-named police officer.
Kuti turned reported himself to the Lagos State Police Command Headquarters on Monday, May 15, 2023, and was promptly taken into custody for investigation and possible trial.
According to Section 356 of the Nigerian Criminal Code Act, “Anyone who assaults, resists, or willfully obstructs a police officer while acting in the execution of his duty, or any person acting in aid of a police officer while so acting is guilty of felony and is liable to imprisonment for three years.”
Seun Kuti’s travails started after he was captured assaulting a policeman with whom he had an argument on Third Mainland Bridge, Lagos.
A 12-second video clip which went viral on Saturday, May 13, had showed Seun Kuti, who wore a red shirt and white pair of trousers, pushing the policeman, who stood beside a Toyota Hilux police van. He then proceeded to slap the cop, as he shouted, “You dey craze? You dey mad?”
A motorist, who filmed the incident from his car, was heard saying, “Omo na Kuti o. Na better news be this o.”
The video had triggered outrage and the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Alkali Baba, ordered Seun Kuti’s arrest.
The Police Service Commission (PSC) soon waded in, demanding the immediate prosecution of the Afrobeat musician, a son of Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulao-Kuti.
PSC Chairman, Dr. Solomon Arase, a retired Inspector-General of Police, said Seun’s arraignment would serve as a deterrent to other citizens, adding that no one has the right to assault a policeman in uniform and on official duty, no matter the offence committed by a police officer.
Policemen stormed the musician’s residence at Allen Avenue in Ikeja over the weekend to effect his arrest but they did not meet him at home. They equally met his absence at Afrika Shrine, where he performs.
On Monday, accompanied by his lawyer and a family representative, the youngest son of Fela showed up at the Lagos police headquarters. He was handcuffed, profiled and driven straight to detention.
