Police authorities in Edo State have arrested students of the Igbinedion Education Centre implicated in a viral bullying incident and confirmed they will be prosecuted in a juvenile court, bringing the case that sparked nationwide outrage to a formal legal stage days after disturbing footage circulated online showing two male students stomping on a defenceless classmate who lay crying on the ground. The Edo State Police Command disclosed on Saturday, through its spokesperson Eno Ikoedem, that investigations had been concluded, all persons directly linked to the attack had been identified and apprehended, and they were being charged to the family court in accordance with laws governing juvenile justice and child protection. The Commissioner of Police separately ordered an immediate expansion of security interventions in schools across Edo State under the Operation Safe Schools initiative, aimed at addressing supervisory lapses in school environments and preventing a recurrence. The command also deployed its Police Campaign Against Cultism and Other Vices unit to carry out sensitisation and reorientation programmes among students and school authorities.
The incident had prompted the Edo State Government to dispatch a five-member investigative committee to the Igbinedion Education Centre in Benin City early in the week, with State Commissioner for Information Kassim Afegbu confirming that the committee gathered testimonies from students, staff and stakeholders. Afegbu described the footage as deeply disturbing and invoked the death of Sylvester Oromoni following alleged torture by fellow students at Dowen College in Lagos as a reminder of the potentially fatal consequences of school bullying that goes unaddressed. He confirmed that three students had been implicated and stressed the responsibility of parents and teachers — particularly in boarding schools — to ensure children under their supervision are protected. He added that juvenile correctional facilities existed for precisely such cases. Governor Monday Okpebholo directed that the investigation be thorough, with all evidence and testimonies examined. The video’s viral spread, showing one of the suspects dragging the victim by his uniform and repeatedly stomping on his chest, drew calls across Nigerian social media for strict punishment and a systemic reckoning with the culture of impunity that allows school violence to persist when cameras are absent.
