The Police Force Public Relations Officer ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi has said that there is no legal provision in Nigeria suggesting that cross-dressing is a crime.
Amid discussions on cross-dressing and sexuality on social media, the police spokesperson stated that crimes against nature or natural offenses account for a greater portion of arrests.
Adejobi spoke as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Tuesday.
He said that certain cases are hard to prove without evidence, and as such, many who cross-dress are often accused of other crimes, and until proof is found, these individuals cannot be arrested.
He said: “I have not read anywhere that cross-dressing is an offence in Nigeria…. Let us be reasonable, you cannot arrest somebody you want to prosecute without having credible evidence and as such, crossdressing is not yet a crime in Nigeria.
“Some of them that are into cross-dressing, the allegation is that they are into something else, that’s where the problem lies. We need to have enough proof that they are actually into ‘that’. All those offences are natural offences in Nigeria and they are punishable under our laws.”
He explained the police needed sufficient evidence that could stand up in court to prove and charge someone for natural crimes.