Akowonjo, Lagos - police violently attacked after shooting bus driver

sunnewsonline

July 28, 2010 - Hell was let loose yesterday at the Akowonjo area of Lagos when a police constable allegedly shot dead a commercial bus driver and wounded a vulcanizer. The policeman was instantly lynched by a mob who overpowered him. Daily Sun gathered that a commercial bus fully loaded with passengers was flagged down by a police patrol team, which was reportedly busy extorting money from bus drivers.
The bus driver allegedly indicated that he had already paid his toll and refused to stop. The constable was said to have fired at the vehicle, killing the driver instantly while other passengers including a vulcanizer suffered gunshot wounds.
Sympathisers who witnessed the incident could not hold back their anger as they went after the police team.
Members of the police patrol team were said to have taken to their heels but the mob, which was desperate to avenge the death of the driver, simply identified as Kazeem, went after the team and succeeded in apprehending the constable.
The mob descended on the policeman and beat him to a state of coma. However, his colleagues called for reinforcement and about 10 patrol vehicles stormed the scene and took away the constable.
Daily Sun reliably gathered that he gave up the ghost on the way to the hospital. However, the mob, which took over the Akowonjo area, barricaded the road, chanting songs condemning the police.
Street urchins popularly called Area Boys hijacked the protest and wreaked havoc on vehicle owners suspected to be either military or police personnel. The protesters were chanting, “Enough is enough,” “Withdraw police from our roads.”
A commercial bus driver who identified himself simply as Wasiu alleged that police extortion on Lagos roads was becoming too much. “They now collect N50 instead of N20. It is not one checkpoint; we have up to 15 checkpoints from Iyana-Iba to Akowonjo. So, you see our predicament,” he said.