A construction company worker, Akwa Jacobson, who was allegedly shot in his left leg by a trigger-happy cop, for laughing at him, has appealed to the Lagos State Police Commissioner, Mr. Marvel Akpoyibo, and the governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, to come to his aid.

Jacobson, who was groaning in pains as he narrated his ordeal to Daily Sun, said there was no longer money for medical treatment. He recalled how he was sitting in front of his compound, discussing with some friends before the incident occured.

He said as they were joking and laughing, a mobile policeman alighted from the bus and started discussing with another mobile policeman, who was riding a motorcycle.

He revealed that the policeman on the motorcycle, later walked towards them and accused them of laughing at him. “We were surprised at his allegation because we did not know him before. We explained to him that we had no reason to laugh at him, as we had not met him before,” he said.

He said the policeman held his shirt and insisted that he must follow him or be dealt with. But the victim said he resisted the attempt to drag him out of the place. At that point, the cop allegedly took the pistol from his colleagues waist and attempted to hit the butt on his head. “I started running, but as I was about to jump over the gutter, he shot at my leg. I am not a criminal, I was not accused of any criminal act. He only accused me of laughing at him. When did laughing become a crime,” Jacobson asked.

He said he was later rushed to the Mainland General Hospital, where he was treated, adding that he left the hospital for a herbal home, as he had no money to continue treatment at the General hospital.
The victim has, however, appealed to the police to save his life and bring to book, the trigger happy policeman.

The man said he had since been incapacitated by the gunshot wound, as he is now unable to stand on his legs. “I now live on charity because I can’t get up from my bed and people are becoming fed up in assisting me.”

However, the state police spokesman, Mr. Frank Mba, said the case was under investigation. He told Daily Sun that the officer had been arrested and undergoing interrogation at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, Lagos.