Police officers attached to the Pedro Division at Onipanu area of Lagos State had their hands full recently when they engaged suspected cult members and robbers in the locality in a gun battle. In the end, a couple of innocent people were caught in the cross-fire. For a long time now, suspected cult members and robbers had reportedly found their way to Mushin and Palm Grove axis of the metropolis.
This had, reportedly given law enforcement agents sleepless nights. The situation got to a stage that Lagos Police Commissioner, Umar Manko, gave marching orders to his Divisional Police Officers to brace up or be quizzed. In line with the directive and acting on a tip off, policemen attached to the Pedro Division recently went after suspects where they were reportedly hibernating.
Around 6:00p.m on Tuesday, May 29, 2013, at Popoola Street in the area, a detachment of policemen reportedly stormed the hideout and engaged the suspected cultists cum robbers in a gun battle. Sadly, during the police shooting, which was described as ‘indiscriminate’, stray bullets from the police guns reportedly hit innocent people close to the spot.
One of the victims of police’s action was a 58-year-old woman, Christiana Omotosho, who came to the vicinity to see her son. Omotosho was reportedly seated outside the house where the suspected criminals were said to be hibernating.
An eyewitness account claimed that the policemen drove into the area on Hilux van and immediately opened fire on the people seated where the suspected bandits were thought to be hiding. It was reported that the bullets hit parts of the shops in front of the house Omotosho and some other fun seekers were seated. She was reported to have suddenly screamed falling face flat on the ground.
It was reported that a pellet from the bullet hit her forehead. Omotosho was not the only victim of the cross-fire. Another victim, identified simply as Olabisi, a cyber café operator who reportedly was at the spot to purchase an item also suffered various degrees of injuries.
When Saturday Mirror attempted to speak with Omotosho, she was said to be receiving treatment at an undisclosed clinic. But her son, Adefisayo, whom the woman came to see, claimed that his mother was badly injured.
“There is a little kiosk in front of my house where guys always hang around. The police were coming from Ogunbadejo area and when they noticed the guys there, the police parked and jumped out of their vehicle. None of the guys ran immediately they saw the police, but when the police officers jumped down and started positioning themselves, that was when the guys started running, and the police began to shoot indiscriminately,” he said.
Adefisayo claimed further that while the policemen were shooting, the walls of the shops were riddled by bullets while bottles and other items around were also hit. Adefisayo, however, claimed that upon reporting the matter at the police station, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) questioned whether he (Adefisayo) did not want the law enforcement agents to do their work as stipulated by law.
One Mrs Oloyede, who runs a bar in the area, also claimed that but for divine providence, a lot of people would have been killed. She claimed that her customers had to run for dear lives when the policemen started shooting indiscriminately.
Saturday Mirror in a chat with a police Sergeant, who pleaded anonymity, learnt that the policemen were on routine patrol of the area and noticed some bad boys lurking around the area before they alighted and gave the suspected criminals a good fight.
The police Sergeant maintained that the suspected criminals also engaged the law enforcement agents in gun duel before they (criminals) beat a retreat and bowed to the superior firepower of the law enforcement agents.
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