Nigerian Woman in UK Detained over Language Mix Up

A Nigerian living in the UK shared this crazy experience about how a language difference led to an encounter with the police.

In a TikTok video posted on Wednesday, she explained how a normal phone conversation at a pharmacy turned into a police investigation.

According to her, she went to pick up medication for her sick husband and made a call to him.

“I told him, ‘I got the drugs, I got two drugs for you. When I get home and you take them, you’ll feel better,’” she said.

Unbeknownst to her, people around her heard her say “drugs” and assumed she was talking about illegal substances.

In the UK, “drugs” is associated with narcotics while medication or over the counter treatment is referred to as “medication” or “medicine”. This terminology difference turned her simple statement into a red flag for those around her.

She wasn’t bothered initially, thinking she had done nothing wrong. But the police showed up and asked her where the “drugs” were.

“When they asked, ‘Where are the drugs?’ I was confused. I told them, ‘What drugs?’” she said.

She soon realized the misunderstanding and tried to explain.

“I told them, ‘Oh you mean this?’” she said, holding up two packs of medication for her husband’s fever.

But they didn’t buy it. They detained her and took her to the police station.

“They didn’t release me until they searched my house,” she said. “This Nigerian English is not just getting me into trouble, it’s causing a big mess.”

She threatened to share a video of her house after the police search. But I couldn’t find it on her page.