Protest as police man kills Okada rider,shoots woman.

There was pandemonium in Ladega,
Ojubode area of Ikorodu, Lagos State, on
Tuesday after a policeman attached to the
Rapid Response Squad allegedly killed a
commercial motorcycle rider, popularly
called okada rider.

Newslinegossips Metro learnt that the policeman,
identified simply as Haruna, in company
with three of his colleagues, had arrested
the okada riders for allegedly breaking the
state traffic law. He opened fire on the
rider, identified only as Lekan, when he
reisisted the arrest.

It was learnt that a passerby, Modikat
Babatunde, was also hit by the bullet.
Chairman, Motorcycle Operators
Association of Lagos State, Ikorodu Branch,
Mr. Kayode Jimoh, told our correspondent
that the incident occurred around 2.30pm.
Jimoh said, "Around 2.30pm, four
policemen attached to RRS came in a white
Toyota Hilux van and parked around
Ladega junction. The police driver
remained inside the van while three
policemen, identified as Haruna, Ayodele
and Ismaila, alighted from the vehicle.
"The policemen were trying to seize the
bike from Lekan but he resisted. Haruna
suddenly cocked his rifle and opened fire,
killing him on the spot. The bullet also
injured a woman who was close by."

It was learnt that the incident compounded
the usual traffic snarl in the area as
colleagues of the deceased protested the
killing of their colleague.
The killer policeman and his team were said
to have fled after the incident.
The second victim, Babatunde, it was
learnt, sustained a superficial injury on her
hand.

Babatunde said, "I went to collect N50,000
as part of my contribution to a cooperative
society when I heard gunshots. The bullet
hit me in the hand but it did not penetrate.
"Unfortunately, in the pandemonium, the
N50,000 was stolen. The government must
see to it that those policemen are brought
to justice."

Jimoh lamented the extortion by
policemen, adding that he had complained
many times to the police authorities about
the excesses of RRS policemen.
He said it was unfortunate that many
okada riders had been killed in the state by
policemen since the enforcement of traffic
law began last year and no policeman had
been arrested.
He said, "Haruna and his colleagues are
very notorious for extortion, most times
they don't even arrest errant okada riders.
They go to places that are not restricted
and seize the motorcycles.
"They then take the okada to Agric area of
Ikorodu and urge you to negotiate the
release of the impounded okadas. They
usually extort between N10, 000 and
N20,000 from us before releasing our
bikes."
It was learnt that the commander, RRS, ACP
Hakeem Odumosu, came to the area to
restore normalcy. Odumosu was said to
have promised the irate mob that justice
would be served.
Soldiers were also said to have arrived the
area to assist the police.
As of 6pm, however, the mob refused to
allow the police to take the corpse away as
they alleged foul play.
When contacted on the telephone, the
Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide,
said she would call back as she had yet to
get full details on the incident.
In a related develpment, a policeman
allegedly shot and killed a youth in Ajah
area of the state.
The youth was said to have been killed by
the police because he stabbed another man
in Ilaje area during a clash.

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