A six-year-old girl, Mariam Adeniji, is currently in shock after
witnessing the killing of her father, Rafiu Adeniji, who was allegedly
shot dead by policemen on Sunday.
The little girl, who spoke to a correspondent while trying to fight
back tears, said her father was killed after challenging policemen
over an accident along the Mangoro end of Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.
She said, "My daddy was driving home when someone hit his car. He went
to see the policemen; they just brought out their guns and shot him.
They then ran away."
Another occupant of the vehicle, Lateef Okesola, who expressed shock
at the incident, said it occurred in broad daylight.
He said, "Adeniji, Mariam and I, were all in his Honda car; Adeniji
was driving. We were headed towards Agege when we saw a white police
patrol vehicle with the inscription, OPS Attack, chasing a commercial
bus. So, Rafiu swerved to the side and allowed the vehicle to pass.
"We continued on our journey but after a while, we found ourselves
behind the same bus. Suddenly, the driver of the bus applied his
brake."
Unfortunately for Adeniji, he couldn't stop his car fast enough as his
vehicle was said to have hit the bus from behind, causing Okesola to
sustain a bruise on his head. An argument was said to have ensued
between the bus driver and Adeniji after the motorist demanded payment
for the repair of the bus.
The deceased allegedly told the bus driver to blame the policemen for
causing the accident.
"The policemen were parked on the side of the road and when Rafiu
approached them to discuss what had happened, one of them alighted and
shot him in the chest before fleeing.
"It was the sympathisers who gathered, that flagged down another
commercial bus to take us all to the Isokoko Police Division," Okesola
added.
After obtaining a police report, Adeniji was taken to the Lagos State
University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, where he was confirmed dead.
Not long after his corpse was taken to his family home at Oshodi,
Adeniji was said to have been rushed to a private hospital after a
sympathiser claimed he saw the corpse move.
However, Adeniji was confirmed dead again at Jericho hospital.
When our correspondent visited Adeniji's mother's home located on
Samura Street, sympathisers were seen coming in droves to condole with
his aged mother said to be in her 70s.
It was gathered that Adeniji was an employee of NAHCO. His colleagues, who came to sympathise with the family, described him as a
hardworking man.
Elder sister of the deceased, Titilayo Akintunde, described the
incident as a nightmare, saying there was a need for the government to
curb the excesses of policemen.
She said, "One wonders why it is those that are paid to protect lives
and property that "continue to add sorrows to our lives in this
country.
"My brother was not a thug. He was gainfully employed at NAHCO. He had
a wife and two children. Unfortunately, his life was cut short in his
prime.
"The case is even more pathetic because he was killed in the presence
of his six-year-old daughter and she has refused to eat since the
incident. It is a sight that she will never "forget. We want justice
for him. Imagine what our mother is going through right now?"
When contacted on the telephone, the Deputy Police Public Relations
Officer, Damasus Ozoani, said, "There was a shooting in Agege area
which led to loss of life. The patrol team within that area has been
arrested and their arms have been taken for ballistic examination."
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