Victoria James experienced the turture and murder of a young man in Lagos. Here’s her side of the story.
It was another hot day in Lagos sate. The 17th of October 2013, just a few days after the Independence day celebration. Those of us with no meaningful thing to do as a result of the ongoing ASUU strike sat in our houses, too scared to venture into the sweltering sun. The rest of us however had to venture out, continuing the daily hustle, or just visiting friends.
In my case, I had ventured out to get an attire I had already made a down payment for, and like any girl, I was excited at the prospect of a new cloth hanging in my wardrobe.
I live along the LASU axis of Lagos and had taken a bus going towards EGBEDA. The usual madness of danfo drivers ensued; bad driving, sudden stops, etc. oh well, I don’t have a car so I have to make do.
On one of these stops however at AKESAN bus stop, I noticed an ensuing altercation between a young man, not more than 25 and an otherwise older man, maybe about 35. Like every nosy Lagosian, the driver parked the vehicle wanting to “separate” this altercation. The argument took place in the local dialect (Yoruba), so I couldn’t be entirely certain of what was going on.
Before we knew what was happening, a police vehicle arrived on the scene, and the few of us who still had a little faith in the police breathed a sigh of relief, at least they were keeping the peace in accordance to their duties.
But this was not to be, for on their arrival, they immediately joined in the altercation and started beating up the young man with their fists and batons. They were now about 5-6 men beating this unarmed man. Of course, every other person backed away, “nobody wants trouble”.
Within a short amount of time, the boy was bleeding from several openings and was almost unconscious, but this was not the end. They eventually resorted to firearms and shot the boy, killing him immediately. Then they jumped into their truck and zoomed away.
It was over in the shortest possible amount of time. I stared on in shock and disbelief. NOO!! This did not just happen. NOO!! FOR HEAVENS SAKES. THE POLICE CAUGHT PEOPLE WHO PARTICIPATED IN “JUNGLE JUSTICE” I thought to myself. This did not just happen!!
Visit Blue Dairies blog to read Victoria James’ original post.