Tag: Ikorodu

•Police: he will be charged to court today 

But for the police intervention angry residents of Ibeshe in Ikorodu, Lagos would have yesterday lynched a suspected serial rapist identified as Badoo.

The suspect was alleged to have raped some married women including Mrs. Grace Obinna Jubreel, 27, who he allegedly mauled in the presence of her 14-month-old baby.

But luck ran out against him yesterday when he was sighted by some members of the community who attacked him for his alleged atrocities.

The residents, who last Thursday, protested at the palace of the traditional ruler in Ibeshe, insisted that the suspect be handed over to them by the Rapid Response Squad (RRS).

The Nation gathered that the mob gathered at the monarch’s palace for several hours, demanding that Badoo be handed over to them.

According to a resident, Segun Ogundeji, it was yet to be ascertained if the suspect was the serial rapist.

He said: “Someone has been arrested, purportedly being the person. But with the situation on ground now, I can’t confirm he’s the person.  He is at the palace of the Olu of Ibeshe. We’ve been trying to manage the crowd for over four hours now. They are insisting on lynching the person but we are pleading that justice should take its course. We are looking for a way to help the police to ferry him away so that investigations can be conducted. I have been liaising between the police and the palace, so I haven’t been able to speak with the suspect, to know whether he’s denying or accepting the allegations.”

Another resident, who gave his name as Adenike, alleged that the suspect usually inflicted knife injuries on his victims, adding that he uses a handkerchief to clean up his victims after raping them.

A police source told The Nation that the suspect has been moved to the station.

He said: “We have moved him from the palace to the station. The residents were really angry and wanted to kill him. But after several hours of dialogue, we were able to take the man to the station unhurt.”.

The police command’s spokesperson, Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent  (SP) said the suspect would be arraigned today.

She said: “The suspect is in our custody. He was arrested over the weekend. The man is a serial rapist. They said he raped and killed a woman, but police don’t have the information about him being a killer yet. He would be charged to court on Monday (today).”

Residents relive Mrs Jubreel’s death

Oke-Ota Community Development Association Chairman, Mr Titilayo Ibraheem, yesterday relived the death of Mrs Jubreel and said it remains a mystery to them how the suspect managed to enter Mrs Jubreel’s room.

“I got a call from the overall chairman of the community, Pastor Adelakun around  1:45am on Sunday, June 5, that he learnt from the chief security that some thieves had broken into a house in my area.

“Immediately I stood up and woke my son who followed me. When I got to the gate, I saw the chief security who was struggling to enter the compound but I was able to help him open it from behind because I am the caretaker of the house. We opened and saw Mrs Grace naked on the ground inside the compound. That was when we detected the culprit carried her out of her room to the compound.

“Immediately, I started knocking on other tenants’ doors because none of them knew what had happened even while the helpless woman was groaning in pains. They were all still deep in sleep. I saw that a generator was on and the sound might have prevented them from hearing. I quickly put off the gen and hit the doors hard, they later came out .

“When I entered her room, I found blood both in the parlour and bedroom, there was an interlock and plier on the floor, I guess that was what she was attacked with. Everywhere was stained. The baby was also on the bed; her pant was stained with blood. It was such a pitiful scene. Together with the chief security and his colleagues, we rushed her to a hospital nearby but they quickly referred us to Ikorodu General Hospital where she was quickly attended to. They gave her blood. I left there with the overall chairman and we went to Ipakodo Police Station to report.”

He continued: “The chairman and the chief security were the ones that spoke with the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), I wasn’t aware of what they discussed but I knew they attended to them. With the protest the women demonstrated yesterday, the DPO and Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) were all there to calm the women who were not happy with the situation. We have learnt of cases of rape before this one and people had suspected one man who they said after raping, he injures the women some times. An old woman I learnt is still in the hospital after being raped by the man.

“The king told the women that the current incident will be the first he is aware of. He has however assured us that effective measures would be taken. The landlord lives in Lagos but he has visited thrice since the incident occurred. Grace is like a daughter to me, she was close to my late wife who was also a teacher. The incident is shocking.”

I saw the suspect

The chief security officer, Mr Femi Oluwaloba, was the first to reach the victim but was unable to apprehend the attacker. He said he heard Mrs Jubreel’s screams  from a distance.

He said: “I saw a man at Oke- Odo , Oke- Ota and towards the transformer close to the gate. I deployed two security men to those areas and I usually patrol with my bike. I guess the incident must have occurred between 12 and 1 because I heard the scream around 1:40 am.

“I quickly rode towards where I heard the scream and flashed my torch immediately I got to the front of the gate. All my thought was that it could be a fight between husband and wife. I shouted and flashed my torch when I saw the shadow of a man but immediately I flashed the torch, he bent and ran.

“I wanted to enter the compound but I was unable to open the gate. I quickly alerted the other security manning other areas to quickly show up. I was struggling to enter but I was unable. I called the overall chairman to call the Oke Odo chairman that something was happening in his area.”

Oluwaloba continued: “So, he came around and was able to open the gate, we found the woman lying in a pool of blood naked and she was badly injured. The man’s palm print was visible on the wall with blood all over. I can’t imagine why he carried the woman out. It was a horrible scene and we rushed her to the hospital.”

“We have learnt of cases of rape in other community and it is obvious it is the culprit that must have come to Oke Odo. We don’t know his mission but the king together with the police have started taking necessary measures.”

The Nation gathered that the tenants have vacated the house out of fear. An expectant mother, Mrs Esther, a neighbour to the late Mrs Jubreel, recalled that she was a quiet and easygoing person.

“ I didn’t see her quarrel with anyone and I didn’t hear anything that day not until the chairman woke us up. My husband is planning to take me out of the house because we are afraid,” she said.

Mrs Jubreel’s remains were buried yesterday morning at her late mother’s residence in Maya, Ikorodu.

Ibeshe women urge police, monarch to take action

Oke- Ota women  have pleaded with their town’s traditional ruler to save them from rapists and other criminals.

They said that Mrs. Jubreel’s case was not the first in the town.

One of the women who led the protest and identified herself as Mrs John, described Mrs Jubreel’s  death as cruel.

She said: “We are all women and mothers. We know the pains we go through during child labour. Grace is like my daughter, an easygoing lady that respects everyone. I was so shocked to see how she was brutally dehumanised. What has she done to deserve such from a heartless man? We cannot take this anymore because we learnt an 87-year old woman was also raped by the same rapist around Abule. No one has been able to catch him red-handed. We want the king to help us take a quick action by providing effective security for all of us because we don’t think we are safe anymore. We want OPC and MOPOL. I believe they can do better.”

Another woman, Mrs Tijani, implored the traditional ruler to curb the incidents of rape by deploying community police to monitor each area.

“I am yet to get over this sorrowful incident, I pray the almighty give her husband the fortitude to bear the loss. It is so painful. The king has assured us that necessary measures would be put in place and since yesterday, we have been seeing police patrol vans coming into the community. Before 10, we have all entered our houses as we have been asked to be security conscious,” she said.

Another resident, Mrs Mustapha, described the incident as sad, stressing that the community wants justice to be done in earnest.

“We are not happy with this kind of incident and we don’t pray it recurs. The king announced yesterday during the protest that Oro curfew will be out to curtail the bad happenings in the community.  He also promised that other necessary spiritual appeasements will be done to bring the culprit to book soonest. We have been asked to be conscious and we equally implore our police men to be more effective. “

•Residents seek Ambode’s help on security

A 56-year old pastor, Isiaka Aikomo, has been shot dead by unknown gunmen in Adamo Community in Ikorodu, Lagos.

Aikomo, who hailed from Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, was killed on Monday near the fence of Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary School, on his way to a building site.

The late Aikomo was supervising the construction of a building owned by a woman simply identified as Omolara.

He was said to have been killed shortly after he left a tipper driver, Mr Olayiwola Oyekola, who owns a block industry inside Joy Estate at Lugbusi, Ikorodu.

Oyekola, it was learnt, helped the late Aikomo to get the job.

News of his death threw the community that has been under kidnappers’ siege, into panic.

Oyekola, who described the incident as “devastating”, told The Nation how he met the victim.

He said: “I am just like a helper to Baba. We met in the church – Palace of Christ, Ikorodu – we were both attending then, and we maintained good relationship since then. He walked up to me one day and explained that he needed something to do as his pastor work is not fetching much. He suggested working with me. I decided to help him and asked him to be coming to my block industry and work as a site supervisor whereby he will be the one to hire labourers, supervise and collect money. Out of pity, I also promised to be giving him some money to help him with the family upkeep. He started working with us on May 9. It is barely a month and everybody likes him because he is so jovial and prayerful.

“We still spoke together the day he died around 1pm. I got him a site job. One of my customers had demanded to clear her site which I told Baba about. I advised him to get a labourer because I knew he will want to do it himself. That day before he left for the site, he told me he wanted to get some water to take along to the site for the labourer doing the clearing. I left him and went to sleep and that was how we departed.

“Around 4pm, I just heard noise and some people rushed to my house to tell me Baba is lying in a pool of blood near the fence of Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary School. I rushed there and saw him lifelessly on the floor. I didn’t see anyone with him. I only saw a bag of sachet water by his side. I got the contact of the labourer and I asked him to come and see what I saw. He was also astonished to see Baba’s body.

“I later called a man who has a site close to the site Baba was supervising and because I saw his car parked few distance to where the incident occurred to ask him if he saw anyone. He told me he was driving when he sighted some guys with guns shooting coming from the river side in the bush and they were shouting “wey them, wey them”. He said he quickly rushed out from his car and ran into the bush but he didn’t see Baba.”

Oyekola said the Imota Divisional Police Officer (DPO) and Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) later came to the scene.

“The DPO and DCO from Imota came to the spot. They found a Bible and olive oil inside Baba’s bag. We later took Baba’s remains to Ikorodu General Hospital mortuary. We are so sad we lost a dear person to the dearth of insecurity in Adamo. We are not safe here. We learnt the kidnappers who might be responsible for Baba’s death were on a mission to collect a ransom over someone who had been kidnapped around Babington School. We equally learnt that the family of the person had informed the police in order to face the kidnappers. We presume exchange of fire between the two parties must have led to this. We call on the Lagos State Government to come to our rescue in Adamo,” he said.

Joy Estate Community Development Association Vice Chairman Mr Kunle Adeleke said Adamo community was becoming notorious for kidnapping.

He said: “After the incident of the three girls that were kidnapped and rescued from the Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary School, three persons have been reported kidnapped in the same area and nothing was done about it. The school got police to man their school; they do not care about the whole community. That tells us we are on our own. We do not have police post in Adamo. There is no way we can get quick response from security operatives if we raise the alarm. It is that worse for us here. We want Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to come to our aid and help us clear the bush that leads to the river side these kidnappers come in through.

“It is unprofessional on the part of our police when we raise the alarm about any criminal act and they shy away from the strategic places they are supposed to man. The policemen that came since yesterday (Monday) were seen at the road side stopping cars and motorcycles indiscriminately. They fail to come into the estate where the incident happened. Insecurity in Adamo is high. Even at the local government level, they have not been doing anything to arrest the situation. We want the government to help us flush out evil doers in Adamo.”

The late Aikomo has eight children from two women, but the first wife is dead.

According to Adeleke, “four of the children are in their tender ages. One of the older ones is in a polytechnic. We have been able to collect police report in order to tender it at the hospital to collect the body. We don’t know if he will be taken to his home town in Oyo State but we will recover his body today (yesterday).”

The Olotu of Adamo community, who gave his name as Babatunde, urged the government to help secure the place.

“It is an understatement to say that we are not safe. Aside from not having police post, our road is not motorable. From Adamo to Agunfoye, it is so bad. We learnt it was abandoned because it is too long. We want the Lagos State Government to come to our aid. Our electricity is nothing to write home about. Our transformer got spoilt some months back. We just want to be recognised here as we are lagging behind. The security is very paramount; we want the government to help us with the challenge of every day kidnapping,” he said.

A MAN was macheted and shot on Tuesday when some policemen and people described as land grabbers stormed Imowonla community in Ikorodu, Lagos.

The land grabbers shot sporadically, with people scampering to safety.

They were allegedly assisted by policemen from Panti, Yaba, Lagos Mainland during the operation, which lasted between 6am and 7am.

The injured Yinka Olatunji is lying critically ill at Ikorodu General Hospital.

The land grabbers and the police were said to have returned around noon, with two buses and started shooting again.

While the policemen arrested some youths and Okada riders for challenging them, the hoodlums broke into people’s home and carted away television sets, jewellery and other valuables.

The policemen, according to some residents, were eight in number and they allegedly came in uniform with their patrol van.

Baale of Imowonla Chief Olasunkanmi Oyebola described the incident as unfortunate, saying the community has not recorded such an incident in the past four years.

He said: “Before now, for three to four years back, we have never had issues of land grabbers known as “Ajagungbales” in Imowonla. It is a peaceful community. We are under Ijede AREA ‘N’ Police Command in Ijede. The police station in Imowonla is just an outpost but whenever there is robbery issue, we report to Ijede. Anti -robbery D9 from Panti police station are the one that broke into Imowonla on Tuesday morning and came back again in the afternoon. They did not report to Ijede police station before they came to attack our people on a false accusation.

“They accompanied the land grabbers who must have narrated a false report to them. They shot sporadically and injured a resident. Immediately they finished attacking our people and left, I quickly called police station at AREA ‘N’ at Ijede, we called the emergency unit and also MOPOL. They all came in to see what the hoodlums had done to our people.”

An Imowonla indigene, Mr Olusegun Ajayi, said the police in Imowonla were “ineffective because they were relaxed when the police that came from Panti attacked the youths in the community.

He said: “I woke up around 6am and heard strange noise and gun shots. I wanted to use the toilet but I had to run back immediately for my life. We heard the police shooting, shouting thieves and they started attacking our youths and our women. They spoilt our things, fired shots to scare women, came into our houses and flung away our things. We can’t even stay in the house because of fear of being killed. We want the government to come to our rescue. We wonder how police officers will connive with land grabbers when Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has given an order that there should not be anything of such.

Another indigene, Nosiru Kayode, said the attack was uncalled for, stating: “What happened on Tuesday was devastating.  We are all one here. We are from the same family. All those people claiming to have land here are non-indigenes, we are not related. We give thanks to God that no one died but one of us was macheted on the head, he was rushed to a nearby private hospital here in Imowonla, but he was referred to General Hospital, Ikorodu because of the extent of the injury. I think it has almost affected his brain. They also arrested six other youths and they have all been taken to Panti on no just cause. We know that the Anti-Robbery officers that came from Panti will not fail to fabricate report about us that we are land grabbers or armed robbers but I want to tell you we are not. They are the ones that have failed to do a thorough investigation before coming to violate our community. We are so shocked to see police officers victimising people in the name of acting in accordance to the report they get from the land grabbers.”

A youth, Akorede Olatunji, urged Governor Ambode to probe the attack, saying Imowonla is becoming inhabitable.

He said: “To my greatest dismay, the officers from Panti around 6am broke into our community with ammunition and returned around noon to steal almost all our valuables. They broke in through the ceiling and scattered our rooms to steal our plasma television, shoes, and clothes. They even broke our burglar proof. They chased us out of our houses and we had to run for our lives. We are living in fear. I know if a bold step is taken by the government, they will fish out these land grabbers.”

Police spokesperson Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent (SP) said the officers were on legal duty.

She said: “The policemen movement to that area is as a result of a petition the command is investigating. I confirm six persons were arrested in connection with the case. The policemen have no reason to move with hoodlums before effecting arrest. There is no point in doing that. They are on legal duty.”