The Nigerian Citizens Association in South Africa(NICASA) has strongly condemned the death of a 40-year-old Nigerian citizen, Benjamin Okoli, while in police custody.
The tragic incident, which occurred in Limpopo Province, comes less than a month after the alleged killing of another Nigerian, 50-year-old Jeremiah Okoye, who also died in South African police custody on January 13, 2025.
The President-General of NICASA, Frank Onyekwelu, described the increasing deaths of Nigerians at the hands of South African police as unbearable.
“The Nigerian community in South Africa is mourning yet another loss in police custody,” Onyekwelu said in a midnight interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
According to NICASA, Okoli, a native of Akpu in Orumba South, Anambra State, was stopped by South African police, searched, and then taken to his house alongside his brother for further inspection.
Despite finding nothing incriminating, Onyekwelu alleged that the officers tortured, beat, and brutalised both men, leading to Okoli falling into a coma. His brother’s attempts to revive him failed while the police stood by and watched as Okoli’s life slipped away. Paramedics later pronounced him dead,” Onyekwelu added.
NICASA further revealed that investigations into Okoye’s death were still ongoing when Okoli died under similar circumstances—allegedly at the hands of the same police unit.
