There was fear and apprehension in the Adamo area of Ikorodu, Lagos, on Monday, when a policeman shot dead a girl during a raid.
The
killing of the girl who is a trader sparked off heavy protest as youths
in the area gave the patrol team a hot chase, forcing the police to
abandon their vehicle and flee the scene. The youths seized the patrol
vehicle and set it ablaze.
A witness, Ben Ndakat, said the policemen had stormed the Adamo area on an evening raid of suspected criminal hideouts.
Ndakat
said as some suspected hoodlums were running away for fear of being
arrested by the police, the cops started firing at the suspects but a
stray bullet hit the young lady.
“The killing of the girl sparked
off serious protest by an angry mob that chased after the policemen who
fired randomly to scare people away, and they escaped but abandoned
their patrol vehicle. The mob set the vehicle ablaze.
“I wonder
the type of training the police authorities give to their policemen; how
could they be firing in the midst of people? They should have known
that those who they were chasing were using innocent people as shield. I
watched how the girl, who was on her own, slumped and died after being
hit by the bullet.”
The command’s Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Bala Elkana, confirmed that a girl was shot dead and said:
“Yes,
a young girl was shot dead by a policeman from the State Criminal
Investigation and Intelligence, Panti. I don’t want to preempt their
motive to the area, but I believe they were there on surveillance. The
policeman who fired the shot is in our custody. We are investigating the
matter.”
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