Pastor
Hakeem Rasaki of New Generation Assembly Ministry was among those who died
while attempting to escape police arrest at the Ajewole Street, Ajegunle, Kosefe
Local Council Development Area of Lagos State after policemen from Owode Police
Station allegedly raided an Indian hemp joint.
The late
pastor was said to be among residents fleeing after the police stormed the
community and started shooting sporadically, spooking many resident into
flight.
The pastor, with others took off and died in the lagoon.
On Saturday, a
police source said that at least five persons died in the lagoon attempting to
escape being arrested by the police.
The five persons died after
policemen from the Owode Police Division, Ikorodu area of Lagos State, stormed
different black spots on Friday.
It was gathered that the police
carried out the raids after receiving a tip-off about some Indian hemp joints
in the area.
A police source: “The raid was
carried out after the Commissioner of Police; Mr. Umar Manko received a
petition from members of the community that robbers were disturbing them in the
area. The community members had also fingered many of the Indian hemp smoking
and selling joints in the area. Five of the suspects died after jumping into
lagoon when they saw the police and started running. Nobody killed them.”
Eye witnesses’ accounts revealed
that immediately the police got to the area, some of the hoodlums in an attempt
to escape police arrest, jumped into a nearby lagoon and drown.
Pastor
Mathew Balogun, a relation of the late pastor Rasaki said: ‘I was in church at
Ishawo in Ikorodu when I received a call that my brother had drown in Ogun River.
Immediately I got the phone call, I contacted other members of the family. We
all mobilized and met at our late brother’s house. We didn’t known what led to
his death. It was when we got to this place this morning that we were told how
he died.
“Our late
brother was never an Indian Hemp seller or smoker! He was a commercial bus
driver, who used to ply the Ikorodu-Ketu routes. Even before he gave
his life to Christ, I have warned him to move out of the house where he lived. He promise to pack
out of the house, but said he wanted to change the lives of some tenants in the
house who does not known Christ.”
According
to Balogun, the late Pastor had never for once sold Indian-Hemp or engaged in
any illicit business. “He was running for his dear life when he fell into the
lagoon,” said Balogun.
Pastor
Rasaki’s corpse was brought out yesterday (Sunday) from the river and taken
away by some traditionalist for buried at the bank of the river.
Some
residents of Unity Street, Dada Street and Ojomo Street faulted how police
invade their community and arrested some alleged innocents people.
One Mrs.
Taiwo Fadairo, a pregnant woman said her husband was arrested right inside
their house.
She said: “I and my husband Abdualahi Fadairo were
inside our room when suddenly, about 10 hefty policemen came and booted down our
door and dragged my husband out. He was wearing ordinary pant, which he used to
stay at home.”
Mrs.
Bimpe Amosu was also arrested in front of her shop for an offence she knew
nothing about.
Mrs. Amosu’s
daughter, Tayo Amosu, implores the police to release her mother, “because where
the incidents happened was not on our street. How policemen come to own street
and arrest innocent people? Jeremiah was arrested with our mother. He is an
engineer, working with China Civil Construction Company. He was sleeping when
the police broke down his door and arrested him.”
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