Lagos residents, motorists raise alarm over criminalities

 Suspected robbers paraded by the police in Lagos

 By Emmanuel Udom 

Residents of Ojota, Ketu and its environs in Lagos, south-west Nigeria seem to be living in perpetual fear over the heat unleashed on them by suspected criminals, who sometimes disguise as area boys or street hawkers.

This is coming on the heels of the fact that few days ago, the police in Lagos paraded five suspected killers of a 20-year-old artisan identified simply as Shina at Cele-Nica along the Badagry expressway in Lagos, have stated that they knew nothing about the murder of the deceased.

Fatai Owoseni, Lagos state police commissioner identified the suspects as:  Christiana Akpan (31), a sex worker, Oluwasina Aregbo (34), a disc jockey (DJ), Tureeb Ganiyu (22), Kelly Onochie (23), and Bamidele Ajibade (41).

These suspects were allegedly arrested at the scene of the crime, rather gave different conflicting accounts of how they were arrested.

However, residents of 25 Musa Adewokun street Ojota told our correspondent on conditions of anonymity that in the last few weeks, suspected area boys, who are always smoking Indian hemp have taken over their premises, unleashing fears into the minds of the residents, especially children area  

According to one of the residents, the police in the area is allege to have compromise as reports made at the Ogudu and Ketu police stations are not heeded to by police officers in the areas.

Speaking on the same issue, Dr Abiodun Olugbenro, a pastor and resident of Ikorodu in Lagos alleged on Monday that there have been rumours that motorists the ever-busy Ikorodu road  do sometimes  become victims of robberies around Ojota and Ketu under-bridge, especially at night and in the early hours of the morning.

His words: Some of these suspected robbers, who disguise either as area boys or street hawkers are rumoured to be in the habits of using razor blasé to cut motorists, who wind down their windscreens while driving.

Joe Offor, Lagos police image maker did not reply to a text message sent to him this morning for official comments on the  allege activities of dare-devil armed robbers operating along Ojota, Ketu, Ogudu and Ikorodu, who disguise as area boys or street hawkers.