Taiwo Jimoh
A 50-year-old man, Mr. Ezekiel Oni, has been beaten to death over a N6000 phone at the Alapere area of Lagos State.
It
was gathered that Oni bought an Itel-phone from a woman identified
simply as Alhaja for N16, 000 and deposited N10, 000. He promised to
balance N6000 later.
It
was alleged that because Oni failed to pay his balance at the agreed
date, Alhaja sent thugs to beat him, in the process, Oni was killed.
Oni’s
friend, Mr. Sunday Aladewolu, said: “A day before Oni promised to pay
Alhaja; her husband called Oni and lied to him that he has a job for
him. Oni was a technician. He used to rewire vehicles. The man asked Oni
to come to their residence at Alapere. The following day, Oni set out
for Alhaja’s home, believing he was going there to fix faulty cars. When
Oni got there, he didn’t know husband and wife had different plan for
him. They had hired hoodlums to beat him for refusing to pay the balance
for the phone. While they were beating him, he was shouting that he
came with the money to pay Alhaja. But the thugs refused to heed him.
After they were through with him, they left him at that spot and went
away. He was rushed to a private hospital by someone who recognised him.
He died a few hours later as a result of injuries he sustained from the
beating."
Aladewolu
added: "The Good Samaritan that rushed him to the hospital used Oni’s
phone to call me. I then informed his wife about the incident. I don't
know why they beat up a grown up man like that to death because of
N6000. He didn't steal the phone. He would have paid earlier, but work
was not coming as expected, thus the payment was delayed. Oni was an
easy going person even in the workshop where we work. He was a
technician; many of his customers can testify to it that he was an easy
going person.”
Aladewolu,
who described the death of Oni as unfortunate, disclosed that the
deceased had two wives. While one of his wives had been told of his
death, the other, who is heavily pregnant, had not been told.
“I
don't want my friend to die in vain. I want justice because Alhaja and
her husband believed they can do anything and get away with it because
they have money. They are now trying to compensate the deceased’s family
members, so that they wouldn’t take the matter to court,” said
Aladewolu.
The distraught first wife of Oni, Bolanle, revealed that was not the first time her husband had bought phone from Alhaja.
She
said: “He used to buy phones from her. In fact, he bought this present
phone because his was stolen. He paid her N10,000, to balance N6000,
which he promised to pay the following Wednesday. My husband had even
taken me to Alhaja's shop to buy a phone for me when I needed a new one.
My husband always patronised her, but on that fateful Wednesday that
Alhaja called to ask for her money, he had promised to give it to her
later that day. I was surprised when a man called him that same Wednesday;
the caller turned out to be Alhaja’s husband. He told my husband that
he wanted him to come and fix his car, that he should come to Aina Obe
Street, Alapere. When my husband got to the street, hoodlums hired by
Alhaja pounced and started beating him, calling him a thief. When the
couple realised that my husband was dead, they ran away. The corpse of
my husband has since been deposited at the Ikorodu General Hospital
Mortuary. Alhaja and her family members are now begging us, they want to
compensate us with N500, 000. We don't want their money, we want
justice.”
Oni’s
daughter, Yemisi, who is a nurse, said: “I was not at home on that
fateful day. I was on duty. It was after I got home that I heard about
the incident. I returned in the morning to see a crowd in front of our
house. Somebody told me that my father was dead. I became confused; how
can someone I left at home hale and hearty suddenly die? I don't know
how we are going to cope without him. How can they beat my father to
death because of N6000? I’m appealing to the Lagos State Government to
come to our aid, because my father shouldn’t be allowed to be killed
like a chicken. I also want to beg the Lagos State Commissioner of
Police, Hakeem Odumosu, to assist us, so that the case will not be swept
under the carpet. I don't have any other person to run to. When I
followed my father’s family members to the police station, we met Alhaja
and her people there, they were begging us to collect N500, 000 and
withdraw the case from the police, as if my father was a chicken."
The
deceased’s neighbour, Benjamin, said: “I saw Oni on Tuesday, he told me
that he would be going to offset a debt of N6000 in order to avoid
disgrace. I was shocked when I heard he had been beaten to death because
of the money. We’ve been living on the same street in the past six
years. We also attend the same church. I’ve never known him to be a
troublesome person. I heard that he has an aged mother in the village.
We’ll not rest until we get justice for him. We, as residents’
association are making efforts to get a good lawyer, who will help in
getting justice for Oni and his family."
One
of Oni’s church members, Mr. David Fakunle, said: “We are going to make
sure we get justice for him. How can they beat him to death? It’s not
done anywhere in the world, just because of money. We’re going to fight
for him. We don't have much, but we have people we can also contact in
the society. We are waiting for the outcome of the police investigation.
We don't know what the Police want to do. Oni must not die in vain."
All
efforts to get Alhaja to state her side of the incident were abortive
as her phone line was not going through, and her shop at Alapere was
under lock and key.
The
Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Bala Elkana, when
contacted about the matter, promised to find out the facts of the matter
and get back to our correspondent, but as at the time of filing in the
report, he was yet to do some.
No comments:
Post a Comment