An 18-year-old boy, Edward Egigi, is presently
writhing in pains after being stabbed over 20 times by hoodlums suspected to be
part of a notorious gang known as Downtown Boys in Somolu, Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro had reported on November 27,
2012 that the suspected leader of the gang, Ibrahim Balogun, also known as
Small Jpron, was arrested by the police in the area and transferred to the
Special Anti-Robbery Squad at the police command headquarters.
It was learnt that following Balogun’s arrest,
many of the residents had gone to make statements against him and were also
aiding the police to arrest the other members of his gang.
Our correspondent learnt that the gang had vowed
to attack the residents for aiding the police in arresting Small Jpron.
When Jpron was arrested, the policemen did not
know that he was a wanted gang leader, until some of the residents came to the
station to identify him.
Egigi, it was believed, was one of the residents
that informed the police that Balogun was the wanted person.
Egigi, a bus conductor, said after Balogun had
been arrested, he was on a commercial motorcycle at Abule Oja to buy fuel when
the hoodlums sighted him and dragged him from the moving bike and stabbed him
repeatedly.
He said, “On November 24, 2012, my boss
sent me to buy fuel at Sabo but on my way back, some gangsters- Elewure,
Osanle, Famous, Eyin bouncing and others- accused me of spying on them in order
to report to the police.
“They took all my money, stabbed me repeatedly
and also inflicted machete cuts on me. They stripped me naked and beat me
seriously until I fainted. They then left me for dead and fled.”
It was learnt that a policeman, took the victim
to Sabo Police Division after the gang members had fled.
The police were said to have rushed the naked
victim to Somolu General Hospital where it was discovered that the 18-year-old
had over 20 stab wounds on his body.
It was learnt that he was later transferred to
Isolo General Hospital and was discharged a few days later.
Meanwhile, residents have urged the police to
find and arrest the other gang members to guarantee their safety in the area.
A 52-year-old resident, who craved anonymity,
said, “If no one comes forward to testify against Balogun, then the case would
die automatically and he would be released. The gang members are aware of this
and have already started intimidating us.
“We therefore urge the police to please locate
and arrest the fleeing gang members so that the residents can live in peace and
sleep with their two eyes closed.”
When contacted, the spokesperson for the state
police command, Ngozi Braide, said the police had made more arrests and would
continue to do so
She, however, said details of the arrests would
not be disclosed, in order not to jeopardise ongoing investigations.
Braide said she was not aware that Egigi was
stabbed but urged members of the public to continue to give the police useful
information that would lead to arrest of hoodlums.
“I spoke to the officer in charge of SARS
and he said that arrests were being made and that the police are making
progress as regards Ibrahim’s (Balogun) case. I want to assure members of the
public that if they come to the police with useful information, their identity
will be protected,” she said.
Punch
No comments:
Post a Comment