Wisdom Elijah, a commercial tricycle rider from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has shared a heartbreaking account of how he spent a year in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.
Elijah’s ordeal began on January 6, 2024, when he accompanied a friend to buy fuel from a black market seller. Unbeknownst to Elijah, his friend stole a pair of footwear belonging to the seller’s son.
The woman whose son’s footwear was stolen raised an alarm, and Elijah and his friend were arrested by the police.
Despite Elijah’s protests of innocence and apologies, they were taken into custody and spent three days in a cell.
On the fourth day, they were arraigned in court and granted N80,000 bail.
However, Elijah was unable to meet the bail conditions and was taken to prison.
Elijah’s friend was eventually bailed out by his parents, but Elijah was left to languish in prison for a year.
He was subjected to harsh conditions, including a lack of access to water and food.
