The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has reacted to a viral video of a school girl smoking “what appears to be cannabis”.
The Force said, it’s attention got drawn to a “deeply” worrying video which is widely circulating across different social media platforms, adding, the video was shared broadly with captions suggesting the incident occurred within a Nigerian school.
The NPF’s response to the video was made known via a Press Release titled ‘Re: Viral video of school girl smoking’, signed by ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, Force Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Abuja, on Thursday 19 June, 2025, via the official X account of the Force.
Investigation by the NPF revealed, the video did not originate in Nigeria, “with multiple indicators pointing towards the video’s likely origin being in Zimbabwe” due to the language spoken within the video – “English and Shona”.
According to the Press Release: “The attention of the Nigeria Police Force has been drawn to a deeply concerning video currently circulating on WhatsApp and other social media platforms, depicting a school-aged girl smoking what appears to be cannabis, surrounded and cheered on by her classmates.
“The video has been widely shared with captions suggesting the incident occurred within a Nigerian school, prompting significant concern, and anxiety amongst Nigerian parents and the wider community.
“However, preliminary investigation into its origin strongly suggests that the video did not originate in Nigeria, with multiple indicators pointing towards the video’s likely origin being in Zimbabwe.
“The evidence supporting this conclusion includes the language spoken within the video. Individuals featured are heard speaking in both English and Shona, the latter being a language predominantly spoken in Zimbabwe and parts of southern Africa.
“Critically, no Nigerian languages or discernable Nigerian accents are present in the audio.
“Furthermore, the original upload of the video was accompanied by a caption written in Shona, with its initial posting on the Instagram channel @rusape_celebs_tv, a channel which is demonstrably based in the town of Rusape, Zimbabwe.
“We urge the public to exercise caution when sharing unverified information, particularly when it involves sensitive content and carries the potential to negatively impact individuals, organizations, and entire communities.
“The Force strongly encourages responsible sharing of information and thorough verification of sources before amplifying potentially harmful claims.”
