A team of policemen attached to testing ground police station, Agodi, Ibadan, on Thursday, shot dead a 32-year-old businessman, Adeyemi Ajayi, at Iwo Road under bridge area of the city.
A member of the team, said to be on patrol, had in attempting to stop the Toyota Camry vehicle in which the deceased was in, fired a shot that hit the deceased in the stomach.
Cousin of the deceased, Kayode Atanda, who was also in the vehicle, was also said to have been hit in the arm by a bullet and is presently receiving treatment at the University Teaching Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.
An eyewitness said, “I was here when the incident happened. He was about to open the car door when the drunken police officer shot him. All the three police officers were drunk. I think government needs to put an end to this unreasonable killing.”
While confirming the incident, state police public relations officer, Mr Gbenga Fadeyi, said the police had commenced an investigation into the incident.
ALSO READ: Ondo CJ turns down lawmakers’ request for impeachment panel for deputy governor
He said the policeman fired the shot that led to the killing in the process of trying to stop the car in which the deceased was in which refused to stop.
His account of the incident read, “A team of ACPOL Agodi who were on routine patrol at Iwo road interchange on 09/07/2020 at about 12:15 pm stopped a Toyota Camry car which was alleged to have refused to stop and in the process, one of the policemen fired a shot which hit one Adeyemi in the stomach and was rushed to Police Hospital, Agodi, for treatment but was later confirmed dead by the medical personnel.”
Speaking on the incident, an elder brother to the deceased, Sola Ajayi, decried the loss of Adeyemi whom they described as the breadwinner of the family.
He bemoaned that their aged mother had been sunk in deep sorrow since hearing about the incident.
He demanded justice saying “my brother must not die in vain.”
The deceased was said to have recently won a contract of supplying plank for the renovation of school buildings in Oyo state and left behind his pregnant wife.
“When the family heard about the unfortunate incident, we went to the testing ground police station to confirm but it was only their vehicle that was at the station.
“When our family lawyer was speaking with the second in command at the area commander, he said the incident was a mistake and that the police who committed the crime had been arrested and detained at Iyaganku area command.
“It was only Kayode Atanda, our cousin who was rushed to the University Teaching Hospital (UCH) for treatment that we met in the hospital. I pray the arm is not later amputated.
“The whereabouts of the remains of his brother is unknown to the family and the police have abandoned the wounded Kayode at the UCH,” Ajayi said.
and then