No fewer than three persons, including a commercial motorcyclist, died yesterday as a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) bus crushed them in Lagos. Although the identities of the deceased could not be ascertained because of the attendant pandemonium, it was learnt that the three victims were young men. The victims, according to sources said, died as the motorcyclist was trying to evade arrest by a police patrol van enforce the Lagos Traffic Law on the Lekki-Epe Expressway. According to an eyewitness, Matty Odoh, the incident, which occurred at Awoyaya Bus Stop, while the patrol team was chasing the motorcyclist, infuriated onlookers who razed the van. It took the intervention of the Nigeria Army’s Quick Response Group (QRG) to restore normalcy, he said. Police spokesperson Ngozi Braide could not be reached for comments as phone calls to her number were unanswered. The army’s 81 Division spokesman, Colonel Omale Ochagwuba, said he was not aware of the incident.
Category: City Beats
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Slain lawyer’s widow, son seek justice
•Recount how he was killed The widow of the human rights activist, Mr. Kunle Fadipe, who was murdered in his Harmony Estate, Ogba, Lagos home, last Thursday by an unknown attacker, pleaded yesterday with the police to find his killer. “Please, my husband’s killing must not join the long list of unresolved murder cases, she said.” Mrs Kemi Fadipe and her injured son, Folahan, said justice is the only balm that could assuage the pains that the murder of their bread-winner has left in their hearts. “Only God knows when I will recover from this shock,” Folahan, 17, a student of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), told The Nation. Kemi, who said she would miss everything that her slain husband stood for, insisted that the incident must be investigated and the mastermind brought to justice. She described her husband as a straight-forward person who would not engage in any deal that could have warranted his killing. In agony, she said that although she initially thought her husband’s attacker was a robber when he demanded money immediately he entered the house, the way he stabbed her husband made her to realise that he could actually have been “a professional killer”. She said: “Upon reflection, I have come to the conclusion that my father’s killer is a professional. He stabbed my husband on the left side of his neck and the left armpit – all indicating that he knew the most fatal places to strike a human body. “I also realised that he was too much in a hurry. He was asking for too many things at the same time and threatening that somebody would die if all were not met. As he was asking for money, laptop and phones, he was not patient even when he saw that my husband and all of us were cooperating with him.” Mrs Fadipe said her husband had gone upstairs to get money for the assailant after demanding laptop, adding: “They were still on the staircase when he began to rain slaps on my husband. When my husband turned back to know the reason behind the assault, he was met with a terrible stab in the neck and that was when we knew he might have come for something else.” She added: “We hit the man with stool, wood, bottles and everything, but he just kept on stabbing my husband.” Folahan, who said he could not believe that his father would not survive the assault, recalled that he had gone out to switch off their generating set when the man suddenly stabbed him in the head with a knife. “When I looked up, he made to strike me again, but I blocked the knife and he cut my right hand. At that point, I ran inside and alerted my father, who ran out and upon seeing me in a pool of my blood, he accosted the man and asked him what he wanted. “The man demanded N500,000 and my father said he didn’t have that amount. He mentioned another amount and my father led him upstairs. They were still there when the man started demanding laptop and other things and just as my father was coming downstairs to hand those things over, he started slapping him and before we knew it, he was using the knife he brought with him on my father.” “We fought him, but he was too powerful for us. He must have been high on drugs because everything we hit him with had no effect on him. We attacked him with sticks, wood and bottles, but they had no effect on him. But we succeeded in blindfolding him with a curtain and that was how we prevented him from escaping,” he said. He urged the Inspector General of Police, Mr Muhammed Abubakar, to ensure that those behind the dastardly act are brought to book. Folahan, who praised the police for their investigations into the matter, urged them to ensure that his father’s killers are unmasked and the reason behind his killing exposed. Meanwhile, eminent Nigerians have been trooping into the Fadipes’ home to condole with the family and pay their last respects to the departed human rights fighter. At his house on Saturday were: Mr. Femi Falana (SAN); founder of Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders Mr. Debo Adeniran; Chairman of Ejigbo Local Council Development Area (LCDA) Mr Kehinde Bamigbetan and his counterpart at the Ifako Ijaiye Local Government, Apostle Oloruntoba Oke.
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Police burst car-snatching syndicate
A member of a notorious car snatching syndicate that specialised in forcing their victims to withdraw money for them through Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) has been arrested by the police in Lagos. The suspect, Wasiu Taiwo, said his gang snatched over 50 exotic vehicles in less than five months, besides forcing their victims to withdraw millions of naira from their accounts. The DECOY Team of the State Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the state police command intercepted the gang. The Nation learnt that the police team intercepted the robbers last Thursday night in Ejigbo after they had snatched a Honda Accord car and took the victim to an ATM where they collected his money. Wasiu was arrested while three others jumped out of the car when the decoy team closed in on them. Police sources said: “When the robbers noticed the police team, they started driving recklessly and operatives suspected them and gave them a chase. Three of the suspects opened the doors of the vehicle and jumped out. Operatives did not shoot at them because they were not sure they were armed robbers. One of them who was arrested is helping investigators to trail his fleeing accomplices”. Taiwo confessed that his gang had been terrorising residents for months, adding that most of the vehicles they snatched were moved across the border where they are sold to some car dealers. He said: “Whenever we snatched the vehicles, we would take their owners along in case there were security devices in the vehicles which we might not be able to operate. Besides, we took our victims to the banks where we forced them to withdraw money with their ATM cards for us; then, we would take them to a distance where we dropped them off. “Since we started, we have snatched over 50 cars and we sold most of them across the border where we have our receivers. We still have some of our buyers here in Lagos”. Police sources disclosed that the suspect was being detained in the SARS’ custody, adding that investigations were ongoing.
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Three-storey building collapses in police barracks
•30 families rescued
A three-storey building collapsed at the Pedro Police Barracks in Somolu, a popular Lagos suburb, on Monday night, trapping many of its occupants.
Those trapped were mostly children and women.
The building, which comprised about 27 official flats and 10 attachments, collapsed about 9pm.
The affected building – Block 9 – is said to be one of the busiest in the barracks and a beehive of commercial activities.
Those trapped were said to have just finished watching the World Cup match between Nigeria and France. They were discussing the country’s fate when the building caved in.
Although no life was lost, eyewitnesses said the number of those injured had not been ascertained.
Sources said the injured were rushed to an undisclosed hospital, adding that they were treated and discharged.
As at noon yesterday, about 30 families rescued from the rubble had been evacuated by a combined team of officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA).
Sources attributed the cause of the incident to structural defects which the occupants had been trying to manage for long.
Properties of victims littered the scene when The Nation visited yesterday. Some of the victims have started relocating to their relations’ homes; others hanged around helplessly as most of their properties were soaked by yesterday’s rain.
A victim, who simply identified himself as Inspector Francis, alleged that those affected contributed N15,000 each for repairs last year when all efforts to get the attention of authorities failed.
“The huge cracks on the walls exposed the crime perpetrated by the builders because the building has no single iron rod. After we gathered the money, we realised about N300,000. We carried out the first major repair since the barracks was built many years ago” he added.
The officer went on: “Our valuables have been destroyed by the rain which started around 3am yesterday. Some of those affected have started relocating with whatever they were able to salvage. Those who have no place to go are those still hanging around the area”.
Another victim, who refused to identify herself, vowed to remain at the barracks with her children until the police found solution to her problem.
“Is this how to treat someone who have pledged to put his or her life on the line in the interest of the nation? The police authorities deduct N14,000 every month from my salary as an Inspector, but what do they do with the money? I occupy a room-and-parlour apartment with my three children. Where do I go to now that the house has caved in on me?” She asked, fighting back tears.
The NEMA spokesman in the South West, Ibrahim Farinloye, told The Nation, that no life was lost, adding that nobody sustained any injury, contrary to claims by some victims.
He said they got information about the incident around 9.30pm on Monday, adding that they deployed emergency crew there promptly.
Lagos Police Command spokesperson Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), said the police deployed men from its engineering department in the scene.
She, said only the staircase of the building was affected and not the entire block.
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‘Separate us before my husband kills me’
A business woman, Omobolanle Shadiyah, broke down in tears before the Customary Court in Oshodi, a populer Lagos suburb, as she sought the dissolution of her 29-year-old marriage to Bisiriyu Olagunju. She alleged that Olagunju is “uncaring and irresponsible.”
Although they were not married under the native and customary laws, their union is blessed with three children: Mutiat Olagunju (24), Deji Olagunju (22) and Kafilat Olagunju (17).
“He calls me his mother but he often beats me mercilessly. I left our home because he threatened to kill me. My husband prefers to sit outside and play with neighbouring children since he does nothing for a living. I am the “man” in the house and still, he does not appreciate my efforts. I usually work late for us to make ends meet but I don’t get the care and love a husband should show his wife. I sleep under different roofs because my husband’s attitude is unpredictable.” Shadiyah said
However, Olagunju told the court he didn’t want dissolution because of the children. “Whenever there is an unwelcome situation in our home, I am being accused. I was beaten by my wife and children after they stripped me naked. I hurriedly took to my heels to a comfort zone. My son suggested I should be detained by policemen because he says I shirk my responsibilities. I don’t want dissolution, but we may live separately.”
The Court President, Mrs Remi Ekundayo, adjourned the matter till August 27 for judgment.
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Pastor who ‘runs kidnap cartel’ arrested
Pastor Ernest Chukwuemeka Nwankwo, a suspected kidnapper and ritualist masquerading as the pastor and General Overseer of Holy Family Ministry a.k.a House of Mercy, has been arrested by the police.
Nwankwo, who fled his home and church in Ikorodu, a Lagos suburb, following an allegation by a member of the church, Rosemary Chukwu, that he sent her to kidnap a six-year-old boy on June 25, was arrested in Ebute-Metta area of the metropolis.
Apart from the boy, eight other kidnapped victims were rescued from him and his gang in Ogolonto area of Ikorodu.
Police spokesperson Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), who confirmed the arrest, said the suspect who had been on the run since the incident occurred was arrested yesterday.
Braide said the matter is being investigated at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba Mainland.
Chukwu allegedly abducted Kelvin Emmanuel, who lives with his parents in the same compound with her in Ogolonto area of Ikorodu.
Sources said the woman was at the bus stop with a box and other commuters who were waiting for vehicles heard the cry of a baby from inside the box.
It was gathered that at first they thought it was a goat crying but people around suspected Chukwu and ordered her to open the box for check.
They were shocked to see a baby in the box and immediately arrested and interrogated her about where she got the baby from and she reportedly confessed that she kidnapped him.
At this point, people beat her, striped her naked and were about to lynch her when policemen from the nearby Ipakodo Police Station arrived the scene.
Chukwu confessed that she kidnapped the baby and wanted to sell him for N4million to a pastor of a popular church in the area who asked her for it.
Nwankwo is an indigene of Nsugbe in Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State.
He allegedly manages two kidnap centres, Happy Family Home Foundation International, at both Ikorodu and Nkwelle-Ezunaka in Oyi council area of Anambra State.
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Cynthia: Court admits video evidence
A Lagos High Court, Igbosere, has admitted as exhibit a video recording of suspected killers of Cynthia Osokogu tendered by the state.
Justice Olabisi Akinlade admitted the video in a ruling after the prosecution and defence teams made their submissions on point of law.
Lagos Attorney General, Ade Ipaye, on Friday sought to tender the video evidence, but after opposition from lawyers to the first and second defendants on grounds that the video recording was not certified, withdrew same and prayed for an adjournment.
At the resumed hearing on yesterday, Ipaye continued his evidence-in-chief with film editor and cinematographer, Emmanuel Peters who told the court how he made the video recording and certification.
He said that he connected his Sony digital camera to a Panasonic DVD player with a DELL laptop computer which he used in producing the DVD containing the video after which he destroyed the copy on his camera.
When shown the video, which played for a short while, the witness identified the DVD and its certification document which Ipaye urged the court to admit as exhibit.
However, counsel to the second defendant (Olisaeloka Ezike), Micheal Ajayi objected the prosecution’s prayer, stating that the document does not fulfil the provisions of Section 104 of the Evidence Act.
He argued that the certification was done after the trial had commenced and that there was nothing to show that legal fees had been paid to obtain the document, citing a case of Tapik United Vs GTB Plc.
Ipaye cited Section 141 of the Evidence Act, noting that the proof of payment is required where “there are legal fees prescribed in that respect.”
Ipaye urged the court to admit the DVD accompanied with the certification as evidence because they are very relevant.
“The DVD was produced at the instruction of the police in the course of investigation; the whole purpose is to put it in evidence in a prosecution initiated by the state as between the police and the prosecution authority.
“What the Supreme Court said on the case cited by the defence counsel was that the learned trial judge ought to have ordered counsel to ensure that the said documents are paid for after which the trial continues,” said Ipaye.
Subsequently, Akinlade ruled in favour of the prosecution and admitted the video and certification as exhibits.
Another prosecution witness, Inspector Yemi Olagbende from the Homicide Section of State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, was later called to give account of his investigation, after which the matter was adjourned till September 19 for continuation.
The defendants in the trial are Okwumo Nwabufo 34; Ezike, 24; Orji Osita, 33, and Ezike Nonso, 25. They were charged with alleged conspiracy, murder, armed robbery administering illegal drug and receiving stolen property.
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Funsho Williams: Tales of sorrow as judge frees suspects
Sergeant Ikpowansa Imariabe stepped out of the dock, walked outside the court room and knelt down with his hands and tear-soaked eyes facing the heavens.
Tears of joy ran down his cheeks as he murmured: “I was locked up for eight years for a crime I did not commit. My wife left me; my mother suffered stroke and has not recovered, but God I still thank you for proving yourself today. At last, the court has proved my innocence.”
Then, he got up, still shedding tears, went and hugged his lawyer, Okezie Agbara, who made efforts to console him. But Imariabe said” “I am shedding tears of joy.”
Similarly, Kayode Mustapha, another defendant in the alleged murder of Lagos politician Funsho Williams, lamented how he lost his child, whom he never saw while in prison and how his mother suddenly went blind following his misfortune.
Bulama Kolo, Musa Maina, David Cassidy, Tunani Sonoma, Imariabe and Mustapha have since 2006 been held in prison custody after they were accused by the state government and Nigeria Police of killing Williams.
The defendants, who were security attachés and domestic servants of the deceased, got their freedom yesterday after Justice Adeniyi Adebajo of a Lagos High Court discharged and acquitted them.
Ruling on a no-case submission made by their lawyer, Agbara, Justice Adebajo held that the prosecution had not established a prima facie case against them.
He said the charges of conspiracy and murder against the defendants were “weak and superficial.”
While the prosecution alleged that the fourth to sixth defendants, policemen deployed to provide security for Williams, made calls with their co-defendants with the deceased’s mobile phone, Adebajo said the state failed to produce the call logs of the communication in court.
Justice Adebajo said: “I agree with the defendants’ counsel that the evidence given in respect of the offence of conspiracy to commit murder is weak and unreliable. Because they are superficial, they amount to speculation when given consideration. There is nothing cogent and compelling to show that any combination of the defendants had acted in furtherance of a crime.
“The Supreme Court per Sir Udo Udoma in the case of Daboh and another v the state held that courts usually consider it sufficient if it be established by evidence the circumstances from which the court would consider safe and reasonable to infer or presume conspiracy.
“In the circumstance of the present case where the evidences are so superficial that they at best present a situation of mere speculation, it can neither be safe nor reasonable to infer conspiracy.”
On the charge of murder, Justice Adebajo held that though it was proven that the deceased was killed, nothing suggests that the defendants’ were his assailants.
“It is noteworthy to state that the Chief Medical Pathologist of the state, in his evidence, state clearly that the deceased was killed by strangulation. The dagger and the rope (found at the murder scene) were distractions. The evidence of the pathologist (PW3) clearly established the cause of death.
“The prosecution did not make any effort to tie the cause of death to the action of any individual or set of defendants. I am satisfied that the deceased has been shown to have died, but it remains at large after the conclusion of prosecution’s case as to the person or persons who caused his death.
“The pathologist who said the deceased died by strangulation did not allude to any of the defendants as having carried out the act, he was never asked. There is absolutely nothing to suggest that the death of the deceased resulted from the act of any of the defendants.”
“In the final analysis, I am satisfied that the prosecution has failed to show a nexus between the defendants with a statutory element of the offence with which they have been charged. Further, I am of the opinion that the evidence led is so manifestly unreliable that this court cannot call on the defendants to make their defense. The defendants are discharged and acquitted and the charge is dismissed,” he said.
Freedom at last…
As soon as Justice Adebajo made his pronouncement, the six defendants who were hitherto apprehensive all beamed with smiles as they left the dock.
Some bowed severally before the judge while others exchanged pleasant gestures with prison wardens who sat close to the exit door of the court.
Outside the court as Imariabe was giving thanks to his God for granting him freedom and Mustapha explaining his ordeal to onlookers, the others were obviously short of words.
Imariabe, who was leader of the police team guarding the late Williams said he was off-duty on the day of the murder.
“In the past eight years, I have not been paid salary. The police virtually sacked me. They sacrificed me for an offence I know nothing about…But I leave everything to God. Please I cannot talk now; I just want to talk to my God first. I thank Him for everything.
Their lawyer, Agbara, who said he did the case pro bono, insisted that it would now be just for the police to reinstate Ikponmwose, Kayode and Tunani Sonoma, who were sacked over the incident.
He charged the police to carry out their investigation to ensure the actual killers of Williams were brought to justice, just as he lauded the judge for his wisdom in handling the matter.
The defendants were first arraigned on March 1, 2013 before Justice Adebajo on a two-count charge of conspiracy and murder of Williams at his 34A, Corporation Drive, Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi home on July 27, 2006.
The alleged offence was said to have contravened Sections 316 and 324 of the Criminal Code, Laws of Lagos, 2003.
Agbara had on May 20, submitted a no-case-to-answer submission after the prosecution closed its case against the defendants.
He had told Justice Adebajo that the state’s case against his clients must collapse because it was built on unfounded suspicion. He submitted that an analysis of the evidence submitted by the prosecution showed that they were at best circumstantial.
“For a court of law to base conviction on circumstantial evidence, it must be of a compelling and irresistible nature to show that the accused persons and no one else were responsible for the crime.
“There has been no legally admissible evidence against the defendants,” argued Agbara, who insisted the prosecution in its case has failed to connect any of the defendants’ with the murder.
Citing Section 243 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos, Agbara urged the court to dismiss the charge and set his clients free.
His prayers were, however, objected to by the prosecution who insisted that the defendants had case to answer, especially because the deceased’s phone was found with some of them.
Prosecuting counsel, Mrs. Idowu Alakija said it had made out a prima facie case enough to warrant the defendants to enter a defence.
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One dies in Lagos boat mishap
One person died when a 10-seater passenger boat capsized on Monday along the Tin-Can-Kirikiri water channel in Lagos, it was learnt yesterday.
Five others, who were rescued by local divers, are receiving treatment in an undisclosed hospital at Ojo.
It was gathered that the boat took off from Ojo at about 12.15pm and was heading towards Tin-Can/Coconut area when it ran into a huge wave created by a big commercial vessel.
The wave, it was learnt, threw the boat high skywards before it landed on its side, spilling all the passengers and cargo into the water.
An eyewitness said: “Those who could swim swam to the nearby island, while few others were rescued by a team of fishermen and local dredgers”.
SouthWest Spokesman of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Ibrahim Farinloye, who confirmed the incident, said the accident occurred in Ibasa area, confirming that only one person died.
He said that all the 10 passengers on board wore life jackets, adding he could not confirm the cause of the mishap.
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Residents in pains over ‘abandoned’ road
Residents in the Bariga Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos State have urged Governor Babatunde Fashola to prevail on the contractor handling the rehabilitation of Igi-Olugbin/Pedro Road to end their pains.
The “abandoned” road, which has become a nightmare to both motorists and commuters, starts from the popular Johnson bus stop through Ladi-lak to Bariga. It is the major link for residents to Palmgrove, Onipanu and Bariga.
A driver on the route, Taiwo Olaniyi,lamented: “We are suffering on this road because of big pot holes, especially from Johnson to Mosalashi bus stops. I don’t know why we are being punished by the government. It is not fair because we pay our taxes. Why did they repair the road from Palmgrove and stop at Johnson last year; to punish us?
“We spend between N5, 000 and N7, 000 on our vehicles at least, twice every week. It has been worsened by the rains. The worst affected parts of our vehicles include the break systems, tires, shock absorbers and springs.”
Taiwo, who said more than 100 buses ply the route daily, noted that apart from the expenses incurred weekly to keep the buses running, they spend money on drugs daily to take care of body pains.
A tricycle operator at Ladi-Lak bus stop, who plies the Ladi-Lak , Palm Grove to Onipanu route, Sulaiman Orelope, said the bad portions of the road affects him and other operators negatively as the machines are not strong to withstand such hassles.
The residents said more than 70 per cent of the roads in the whole area are in very bad shape requiring urgent attention.
Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, who spoke with The Nation through his Public Relations Officer (PRO), Biola Fagunwa, said the state has a commitment to provide roads as a socio-economic infrastructure necessary as a catalyst for economic activities and improvement of social condition of the people. But he said the state cannot rehabilitate every road within the state at once because of limited resources.
Hamzat added: “We are currently working on Igi Olugbin Road. The first phase of the project which comprises of Bakare Avenue, Salami Shuaibu Street, Adaranijo and Onisemo streets, is almost completed. Under the phase 2, Messrs HFP Engineering Ltd, the same contractor that handled Phase 1, will work on Igi Olugbin-Okuta Road and Deji Aladejobi Street.”
He debunked insinuations that the government deliberately delayed the project for later use as a campaign strategy, saying that the state is bent on providing the dividends of democracy to all residents.