The Nigeria Police has shed light on the complexities surrounding the arrest of crossdressers in the country, citing legal limitations and the need for credible evidence.
In an interview on Channels TV, the police spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, addressed concerns about the legality of arresting individuals who engage in cross-dressing.
Adejobi clarified that cross-dressing is not currently recognized as a punishable offense in Nigeria, making it challenging for law enforcement to take action against crossdressers.
Adejobi emphasized the importance of having credible evidence before prosecuting individuals accused of cross-dressing.
He noted that while there may be allegations linking cross-dressers to the LGBTQ community, substantiating such claims in court requires concrete proof.
The police spokesperson highlighted the need for sufficient evidence to support any legal action, stating, “There are some cases that are always very difficult to prove. I’m not ruling out that we have many of them. Let us be reasonable, you can’t have someone you want to prosecute without having credible evidences against them. I have not read anywhere where crossdressing is an offence in Nigeria.
“Some of them that are into crossdressing, the allegation is that they are into something else. That’s where the problem lies. We need to have enough proof, credible evidence to prove that they are actually into that. All those offences are natural offences in Nigeria and they are punishable under our laws”.
