Motorist says police freed him after he mentioned VDM’s name

A Facebook user, Livinus Nwosu, says police operatives in Benin, the Edo State capital, released him after he mentioned the name of social media personality Martins Vincent Otse, despite initially detaining him over his vehicle’s tinted permit.

Mr Otse is widely known as VeryDarkMan (VDM).

Mr Nwosu stated this in a video posted on Facebook on Thursday, claiming the incident occurred earlier that morning.

PREMIUM TIMES could not independently verify his claims. The police spokesperson in the state, Eno Ikoedem, did not respond to calls, a text message, or an inquiry sent to her WhatsApp line as of the time of filing this report.

“They didn’t find anything”

In the video, Mr Nwosu displayed what he identified as his driver’s licence and vehicle documents while standing beside a silver-grey-tinted vehicle.

“These are my papers. I just renewed them. They ought to have expired in 2027. This is my driver’s licence,” he said.

According to him, members of a police special squad stopped and searched his vehicle but found nothing incriminating. Mr Nwosu said the officers subsequently demanded his tinted permit, which he claimed to have presented via his mobile phone.

“They asked after my tinted permit. I showed them because it is on my phone. These people (police operatives) asked them to impound any vehicle with or without a tinted permit.”

He also noted that he had paid over ₦70,000 to obtain the permit. “I passed through a lot before I got the permit,” he said.

“I told them I was on an errand for VDM”

Mr Nwosu said he was taken to a police station despite presenting the permit. He alleged that the situation changed after he informed the officers that he was in Benin on an assignment for VeryDarkMan.

“The operatives took me to their station. Immediately I got there, I told them I was on an errand for VDM in Benin.”

According to him, the officers then released him without further action. “As I told them (VDM sent me to Benin), they asked me to go. In the end, everybody knows what they are doing.”

He questioned the basis for his release if the alleged offence warranted impounding his vehicle. “I saw no reason why they allowed me to go after I mentioned VDM’s name. I committed no offence; instead, the operatives apologised to me.”

Addressing the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, Mr Nwosu suggested that the enforcement of car tinted permits in Nigeria amounted to extortion. “This message is for the Inspector-General of police. Have you instructed operatives to impound vehicles with tinted permits because what they do there is pure fraud?”

Background

Mr Nwosu’s allegation surfaces amid lingering controversy over the Nigeria Police Force’s tinted permit policy.

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In December 2025, PREMIUM TIMES reported that the police announced plans to resume nationwide enforcement from 2 January, citing security concerns and urging motorists to obtain permits through its digital platform.

The announcement was challenged by the Nigerian Bar Association, which argued that the move violated a pending court process and could expose motorists to harassment and extortion.

In December 2025, a Delta State High Court restrained the police from enforcing the policy or harassing motorists pending the determination of a substantive suit. In compliance with the order, the police announced in January 2026 that they had suspended enforcement while awaiting the court’s decision.