N14m debt: Portable fails bail conditions, sleeps in police cell

The Nigerian musician known by his stage name, Portable, Habeeb Okikiola, spent the night in a police cell after he neglected to appear for his scheduled release on bond. He was taken into custody when he refused to pay the N14 million debt he incurred from buying a G-Wagon from a Lagos State car dealer.

Our correspondent was informed of the development by a source on Wednesday.

According to the source, once Portable was taken into custody on Tuesday, terms of his release were established, but he didn't follow through on them.

As of right now, he remains under police arrest. When he declined to pay the remaining sum after paying N13 million for the G-Wagon that should have cost N27 million, the car dealer requested him to return the vehicle when his excuse was that it was bad but he also refused,” the source said.
When reached on Wednesday, Benjamin Hundeyin, the state police public relations officer, confirmed that Portable had spent the night in a jail cell following his detention and that the artist was still under police custody.

"He has not yet presented any credible surety, so he (Portable) is still with us," stated Hundeyin.

In the meantime, our correspondent saw in one of the two widely shared films that captures the moments when police tried to arrest Portable that Portable tried to avoid arrest as he left the area.

He was pursued by the police, who eventually caught up to him and pinned him.

Our correspondent saw that Portable was resisting arrest by four police officers who hauled and dumped him inside a van, even though they had managed to pin him down.

The videos had been eliciting a range of responses.

While some chastised Portable for defying arrest, others accused him of defaming his social standing by withholding the N14 million remaining from the car's purchase.
According to reports, Portable only paid N13 million towards the N27 million car's purchase price and refused to pay the remaining N14 million.

The car dealer reported to the police after making multiple unsuccessful attempts to persuade Portable to pay the remaining amount, claiming that the vehicle was defective as Portable's justification.