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| The late Akeem |
Angry tricycle riders yesterday morning besieged the
Afonka Police Station, located at Akowonjo Egbeda area demanding justice over
the shooting and subsequent death of their colleague by unknown Assistant
Superintendent of Police (ASP) on Tuesday night.
The deceased Aranse Akeem, 31, married with one kid,
was said to have been shot at close range by the angry policeman and he died
immediately at the spot. The bullet which hit him on his left side chest was
said to have come out from his back.
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| Tricycle with leaf to mourn departed colleague |
A tricycle rider, Mr. Basa Paul, who witnessed the
murder of Akeem, said the incident occurred around 6pm on Tuesday, at Karim
Lakanu Street, Egbeda.
Paul said the policeman whipped out his service pistol
from his waistband, shot Akeem, still armed with the gun, grabbed and held a
commercial bike rider hostage. He ordered the motor rider to take him away from
the scene.
According to Paul, trouble started after a tricycle
rider, fully loaded with passengers, tried to reverse, unaware that a motorbike
rider was coming. The tricycle and motorbike rider bumped into each other. The
motorbike rider was carrying the policeman.
Immediately the riders bumped into each other, the
policeman, who was in mufti jumped down from the motorbike that was carrying
and stood in front of the tricycle, threatening to deal with the man for riding
in such a manner.
Paul said: “We never knew he was a policeman. He
challenged the tricycle rider on his bad turning. Akeem and I got up from where
we were and went over to start begging and apologizing to him. We begged him
because we wanted him to allow the tricycle rider to go. As he stood in front
of the tricycle, holding unto it, he had already caused serious traffic jam.
“But no matter how much we apologized and begged, he
refused to leave the road and the traffic continued. While this was going on, a
motorbike rider rode past, he said if you people knew who you were dealing
with, you wouldn’t dare to argue or challenge him. He left. Akeem now held him
and dragged off the tricycle, so that motorists would past. That was how he
brought out pistol from his waistband and shot Akeem, just like that. He shot
again into the air and people scattered. He used his pistol to stop motorbike
and ordered him to ride. I quickly followed them with my tricycle. I knew he
was running away. When my tricycle was about to lose them, I stopped a
motorbike rider and followed them.”
Paul said he followed them until the policeman
entered Unity Estate Close, beside the Abdul-azee’s Central Mosque, Abule-Odu
area. When Paul sighted that the shooter had stepped down from the motorbike,
he alerted mechanics around there, telling them that the man had just killed
someone.
“We moved towards him. When he ran, he didn’t know
the direction he took was a close. He brought out his pistol and shot into the
air, forcing people to run. But I continued to follow him. He said he would
shoot me. I told him to go ahead, reminding him that he had already killed
someone. Suddenly, the same motorbike rider that picked him came back and took
him. I tried to follow, but couldn’t,” said Paul.
Paul said he started calling his colleagues, to tell
them what had transpired. The first thing the members did was to hunt for the
motorbike rider that took the policeman to Unity Estate. They found and took
him to Afonka Police Station.
Yesterday, the members also searched for the
motorbike rider who told Paul and the late Akeem that they didn’t know whom
they were dealing with. They got him. He said his name is Eze. He said he knew
the policeman and family, identifying the trigger happy policeman as ‘Mohammed.’
He also said the shooter is a two star police officer. The corpse of Akeem had
been taken to a mortuary at Yaba.
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