Commercial and social activities at the Ijora Olopa livestock market, Lagos, came to a halt on Tuesday after some gunmen opened fire on a team of five policemen in the area, killing three of the policemen and injuring two.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the policemen, who were attached to the Area C Command, Surulere, were driving by the area around 11am when the gunmen opened fire on them.

A trader at the market, who identified herself as Ifeyinwa, said the traders and customers in the market fled in different directions before hiding in their shops when they heard the gunshots.

She said, “Between 11am and 12pm, we heard sporadic gunshots and we all ran for cover. The shooting did not take place in the market but under the bridge. A few minutes later, we came out to see the corpses of the policemen.

“I don’t think anyone stayed to watch the shooting but we were told that the gunmen were robbers and they opened fire on the policemen in a bid to escape.”

PUNCH Metro learnt that another team of policemen, attached to Area C, visited the scene and evacuated the corpses while the injured policeman was rushed to an undisclosed hospital.

A reliable police source gave the names of the slain policemen as Sergeant Bolaji Adewusi, Corporal Isibor and Corporal Emmanuel.

Our correspondent learnt that a few hours later, a combined team of Area C policemen and operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad returned to the area to interrogate some eyewitnesses.

A reliable police source said there was no robbery, explaining that the policemen were killed probably because the assailants wanted to snatch their guns.

He said, “From what we gathered, three armed men on a motorcycle drove close to the police patrol van, brought out their guns, and opened fire on them before fleeing. We discovered that there was no robbery in the area.

“The surviving policemen are giving us information and efforts are on to apprehend the suspects. We believe the policemen were shot because the assailants wanted their guns.”

When contacted on the telephone, Deputy Police Public Relations Officer, Damasus Ozoani, said, “A team of policemen were in a patrol vehicle at Ijora Olopa under bridge when some gunmen opened fire on them. The gunmen shot one of the tyres of the patrol vehicle and the police driver lost control.

“The policemen were able to return fire and one of the robbers was shot but his colleagues took him away. Two policemen lost their lives while two others were rushed to hospital. Investigation is ongoing.”

Swat force part II