Lagos under siege: Robbers kill two cops, seven others
FRANCIS SUBERU AND MURITALA AYINLA 10/09/2012 00:00:00
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Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar
Armed robbers yesterday launched attacks in some parts of Lagos metropolis, killing two policemen and seven others.
At least 10 persons were also said to have been seriously injured during the operations that saw the robbers shooting indiscriminately.
The robbers struck in Ijesha, Adekunle in Yaba, Gbagada, Anthony, Maryland, Pen Cinema in Agege, Ojodu Berger, and Falolu/ Aguda in Surulere. At Ijesha, a commercial motorcyclist, popularly called Okada, was killed, while two other persons were seriously injured.
At Adekunle Street in Yaba, an Okada rider and another person were killed, while in Gbagada area a man was shot and three other people injured.
An eyewitness told our correspondent that the robbery at Ijesha led to pandemonium in the area as the robbers shot sporadically at different directions in a desperate move to snatch a Toyota Camry car.
He said the Okada rider, who was hit by a stray bullet, died on the spot. “It happened about 2p.m.
The incident was sudden and dreadful. We just heard their gunshots and saw them trail a Toyota Camry. When they got to Ijesha market, they crossed the vehicle, dragged the owner out of the car and drove off.
“They were three young men and they carried AK47 rifles. They were shooting sporadically. Apart from the Okada rider who was hit by a stray bullet, there was a shop keeper who was also hit on the leg by a stray bullet.”
At the Oke-Odo area of Agege, it was gathered that seven armed robbers attacked foreign exchange dealers in an operation that lasted about one hour.
Unconfirmed reports said the robbers who drove in two SUVs, a Toyota Prado and Nissan Armada, shot dead four bureau de change operators, who refused to surrender their foreign currencies.
The robbers and the police exchanged gunshots, while many people were injured via stray bullets. It was also learnt that two bags containing local and foreign currencies running into millions were carted away by the criminals.
Some of those injured were rushed to a private hospital at Oke-Koto but they were rejected and were taken to another private medical centre at Alfa Nla Street in the same vicinity.
A stray bullet was said to have hit a six-year-old girl in the eye and her grandmother was shot in the forehead while they were watching television in their home at 15, Alfa-Nla Street, Agege.
Another bullet also hit a parked Volvo ambulance with registration number HL 355 AAA belonging to Motolani Medical Centre, and shattered the back windshield.
National Mirror learnt that as the robbers were escaping in their SUV, a team of Rapid Response Squad, RRS officers, chased them in their patrol vehicle with registration number 525.
The police team caught up with the robbers at Guinness bus stop, along Oba Akran Avenue in Ikeja but the robbers shot dead the police patrol team driver and another policeman on the spot before they escaped with their loot.
At Gbagada, another gang of robbers attempted to rob the ATM belonging to a branch of GTB in the area.
Just like the robbers at Ijesha, they were also shooting sporadically, killing one man and injured at least three people in the process.
The robbery at Adekunle area of Yaba, which left a commercial motorcyclist dead, led to a brief protest by Okada riders in the area as they carried the corpse of their colleague to Adekunle Police Division. There was also a protest by Okada riders at Area F in Ikeja over the killing of two commercial motorcyclists.
It was also gathered that there were robbery incidents at Morgan Estate 2, Ojodu, Surulere, Anthony and Maryland where an official of the Lagos State Transport Management Authority, LASTMA, was reportedly shot.
The state Police Commissioner, Mr. Umar Manko, has ordered all police officers in the command to ensure that the gang members were arrested.
The Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Ngozi Braide, told our correspondent that the rampaging armed robbers were of the same gang, even as she confirmed that the hoodlums killed two police officers.
She said: “They are the same set of armed robbers running around as police officers chase them. “We have lost two officers and we are still on their trail because the CP has ordered all police officers in Lagos to be on duty and ensure that the robbers are arrested.
“There is no cause for alarm as police officers in the state are battle ready to stamp out criminals and criminality in the metropolis.
“Let me assure you that the police will not rest until the robbers are arrested. Officers have been deployed to strategic locations to ensure their arrest.”
Also, two persons, including a policeman, died yesterday in an accident involving a Volkswagen LT commercial bus at Ikeja bus stop, Lagos.
The policeman and the driver (names unknown) died instantly as the bus with registration number AX336-EKY skidded off the road at about 2:30p.m. and crashed into the rail lines near the bus stop.
An eyewitness, Mrs. Kudirat Ayoola, said that the bus contained three people – the driver, the conductor and the policeman. She said that the bus that was on a high speed from Oshodi, suddenly skidded off the road before it was stopped by the rail tracks. Meanwhile, Governor Babatunde Fashola at the weekend dismissed the argument that state police would be abused if established.
The governor’s reaction came on the heels of disclosure by the Lagos State Security Trust Fund, LSSTF, that it had donated over 400 patrol vehicles to the police in the last five years, while the Federal Government donated 20 in the last six years.
Fashola, who spoke in Lagos at a meeting with some journalists, cited the recent clash between the police and miners of Malema in South Africa, saying even in the biggest democracies of the world, there were reported cases of abuse by policemen on the citizens.
He argued that if a referendum was organised in Nigeria today on the issue, Nigerians would unanimously pitch their tent with those in support of an efficient state police that could protect lives and property even if it could be subject to abuse.
Fashola also debunked the claims that state police would be used for electioneering purposes, saying that such claims had been gaining currency in Nigeria because no attempt had been made to properly organise elections, necessitating the deployment of heavy security personnel, including soldiers, to monitor elections.
According to him, “Nigeria operates a constitution that creates federal and state governments, federal and state legislature, federal and state courts to adjudicate on the laws made by the different levels of parliament but sadly there is no state police.”
Also speaking in the same vein, the LSSTF Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Fola Arthur-Worrey, bemoaned the failure of the Federal Government to adequately equip the police. This, he said, made governors to champion the security of their states through subventions and trust funds.
He noted that the security trust fund had also provided about 30 armoured personnel carriers, APCs, stationed at strategic locations in the state, eight armoured gunboats and smaller speedboats.
Commending the residents of Lagos for contributing generously to the funding of the state security outfit, OP MESA, Arthur-Worrey said the substantial donation come from the state government and other donors, largely financial institutions and corporate organisations.
He added that the trust fund also contributed from its proceeds to the State Security Service, SSS and prison service and commended Fashola for setting up a transparent trust which had the confidence of Lagosians.