Peter
The
Lagos State Police Command has commenced investigation into the murder
of an estate agent, Peter Adeoye, who was killed by three armed men on a
motorcycle in the Alagbado area of the state.
Relatives of the deceased told PUNCH Metro
that Peter was doing some work on a piece of land along Unity Road,
Amikanle, Agbado, on November 14, 2013, when the gunmen shot him to
death.
Peter’s wife, Tosin, told PUNCH Metro that the incident occurred around 6am.
Tosin, a police corporal, said her 45-year-old husband’s death still seemed like a nightmare.
She said, “Around 5.30am on that day, we
had just finished morning devotion when my husband said he had to work
on a piece of land where MTN was installing a communication mast. It was
too early, but he said he needed to make money.
“The piece of land is close to my
husband’s office and just about five minutes away from our house, so I
told him not to stay long. About 30 minutes later, my husband’s driver
called to say there was trouble.
“The driver said when my husband parked
in front of the land, an old man met him by the door of the vehicle and
was talking to him when three armed men on an unregistered okada
(motorcycle), opened fire on my husband. The men then alighted from
their bike and stabbed my husband in the head.”
Peter’s widow said when she arrived at the Alagbado Police Division, she was told that her husband had died.
Our correspondent, who visited the
deceased’s home, learnt that he was survived by five children. His
oldest child, Anu, is 13-years-old, while the youngest, Omobolaji, is
only four.
Eniola, a six-year-old daughter of the
deceased, said, “I have been having bad dreams that the men that killed
my daddy are coming to kill us too.”
The deceased’s wife called on the government to ensure that their lives were not in danger.
“My husband was just 45-years-old and
was brutally murdered. He was the breadwinner of this home, leaving me
with five children. Can my salary as a police corporal sustain this
family? Government should please ensure that we are not killed as well,”
she said.
Tosin explained that her husband had a feud with many members of the community over land matters.
PUNCH Metro investigations
revealed that the deceased had been dragged to court by over four people
as he had been accused of grabbing and defrauding potential land
buyers.
A petition written against the deceased
by members of the community and addressed to the Inspector General of
Police, which was sighted by our correspondent, stated that the deceased
had on numerous occasions used policemen to intimidate members of the
community and seized lands from legitimate owners.
The deceased, it was learnt, had been
arrested and taken to the Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, in May 2013,
where he signed an undertaking not to terrorise members of the
community anymore.
In a petition signed by some landlords
in May, the community, Alhaji Razaq Olaniyi, Alhaji Isiaka Adekunle
Concord, Mrs Kemi Anifowoshe, Mr. Oladejo Akeem and Mrs Balqis Asiwaju,
the community alleged that after Peter’s release, he continued to
terrorise them with the connivance of the police.
One of the petitioners, Anifowoshe, who is a landlady, was said to have been beaten and stripped naked by Peter and his thugs.
The petition read in part, “It is
pertinent to note that Peter Adeoye had put down an undertaking before
the IG Monitoring Group headed by DCP Bala Ciroma in Abuja, that he
would be of good conduct and behaviour before he was granted bail.
“Adeoye came back as a wounded lion,
chasing all he considered as being behind his arrest with the support of
the X Squad and the Special Anti-Robbery Squad.”
PUNCH Metro learnt that the
police had arrested some of the members of the community and had invited
some of the petitioners for questioning over his murder.
Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi
Braide, said the matter was under investigation, adding that the corpse
had been taken to mortuary for autopsy.
“The deceased was murdered around his
office on Unity Road, Amikanle, Agbado, around 6.30am last Thursday.
Investigations are ongoing,” she said.
PUNCH
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