Victor EzejaCSP Kazeem Sumonu Abonde, Senior Police officer lynched by mob of attackers at Ajao Estate, Isolo, Lagos
A senior police officer identified as CSP Kazeem Sumonu Abonde lost his life during a joint raid by Police drawn from Rapid Response Squad (RRS) and Taskforce at Ajao Estate, Isolo Lagos on Thursday.
A statement by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Lagos State Command, CSP Adekunle Ajisebutu, confirmed the incident, saying it happened during a raid of identified flash points and enforcement of ban on use of motorcycles in restricted areas in the Estate and similar places in the State.
Ajisebutu said the officers had successfully concluded the operation having arrested some suspects in the area, when hoodlums in large number barricaded the exit gate and attacked police officers and unfortunately killed Abonde in the process.
The statement reads, “Lagos State Police Command lost one of its finest officers during a raid on criminal hideouts in Ajao Estate, Lagos State yesterday 23rd September, 2021.
“The incident happened when tactical teams of the Command comprising men drawn from Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Taskforce, Ajao Estate Division and other divisions were carrying out raid of identified flash points and enforcing the ban on use of motorcycles in restricted areas in the Estate and similar places in the State.
“The exercise was a routine proactive approach aimed at curtailing activities of armed robbers and other criminal elements in the State. Similar exercises were carried out in the past in other parts of the state which have resulted in reduction in crimes in the areas.
“After the successful operations which led to the arrest of some of the suspects, other criminal elements and hoodlums in their large number laid siege to the exit of the Estate and attacked the policemen with guns, cutlasses and other dangerous weapons.
“Unfortunately, during the fatal attack, CSP Kazeem Sumonu Abonde attached to the Operations Department of the Command was brutally killed by the hoodlums.
The police spokesperson also disclosed that the DPO Ajao Estate, CSP Abdullahi Malla and other Police officers equally sustained varying degrees of injuries in the attack by the hoodlums.
He added that the corpse of the deceased officer has been deposited at the Yaba Mainland Hospital for autopsy.
The statement added that the Commissioner of Police, CP Hakeem Odumosu condemned the attack on the policemen who were carrying out legitimate duty at the time and has directed that a discreet investigation into the incident should be carried out immediately to ensure that all suspects responsible for the act be identified and arrested for prosecution.
A video of the incident that went viral social media, on Thursday night showed damaged police van and the officer lying in his pool of blood.
The affected officer was said to have been hit with a dangerous object by the attackers.
When Prime Business Africa visited the scene of the incident, a security officer working with one of the private security companies who is posted to the area, who didn’t want to be mentioned, said two officers were killed by the mob while confirming that their patrol van was also badly damaged.
The security officer said some of the attackers were commercial cyclists popularly known as okada, who wanted to resist arrest and seizure of their bike by police and taskforce.
He also claimed that some of the attackers snatched gun from one of the officer and used it to attack the officers, adding that it took the intervention of officers drawn from Special Response Team (SRT) to control the situation, while also arresting some people seen in the area including some private security officers working there.
Prime Business Africa observed there was no okada operating in the area on Friday.
Some commuters said they were running away from police to avoid being arrested. Police were seen patrolling the area probably to fish out hoodlums.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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