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Two die
in Lagos as mob attacks police station By Sisaa Agboh
and Femi Ogbonnikan
(Lagos) Two persons were shot dead in
Lagos on Sunday as members of a football club in the Dopemu area
confronted men in military uniform who wanted to extort money from
them. A protest followed and that
led to the arrest of 27 persons for attempting to burn down Dopemu police
station. The crisis paralysed
activities in and around Dopemu. Several vehicles were burnt or vandalized
by an irate mob which stormed the police station with the corpses and
demanded justice. Eye witnesses recalled that
the trouble started when a man in military uniform sought to protect
members of the club, called Agege Grassroot Football Association, as they
were about to kick off their monthly match. Their explanation that they
did not need any protection failed to impress the soldier. He invaded the
pitch with four other men also in military uniform. The interruption angered
members of the club and spectators who tried to drive them out of the
pitch. Two members of the club were
shot dead in the ensuing struggle. The club members and their
supporters took the bodies to Dopemu police station and demanded justice. During the invasion of the
station, the crowd, armed with dangerous weapons, burnt two cars and vandalised several others. Some police officers were
wounded as they tried to protect the station. The situation was brought
under control by a detachment of anti-riot policemen from the Command
Headquarters in Ikeja and the Area G, Ogba. Police Spokesman, Bode
Ojajuni, confirmed the incident. “What happened has nothing to
do with our men. They
(the crowd) claimed some people in military uniform attacked them. We are
still investigating the claim and we have spread our dragnet to arrest the
people who attacked them”, he said. He added that 27 persons,
including the leader of the club, Olugbemi Ogunjimi, have been
arrested. According to him, the clash
was ignited by a soldier, who went to the pitch where a competition was
going on between two teams and demanded money to enable him and his
colleagues provide security for them. He recounted that while
Ogunjimi had given his word to pay up after a meeting with the
representatives of both teams, another group of two soldiers emerged and
demanded money to beef up security. Ojajuni said the request drew
the ire of a group of spectators which witnessed the agreement with the
first soldier. The spectators asked all the
soldiers to take their leave or risk being lynched. They in turn fired gun
shots which killed one person, he added. Ojajuni said the protest at
the police station was initially peaceful but was hijacked by hoodlums who
torched a police patrol vehicle and a motorcycle. Another source confirmed that
four soldiers have been arrested. |
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