I want justice says the father of the boy police k*lled

It was in  June 2013, Olayinka Kolawole gained admission to Tai Solarin University of Education, Ogun State, to read Mass Communication, his family and friends rejoiced with him.

This was because Kolawole  had been trying for three years to further his education after finishing from Sam Glory Secondary School, Ejigbo, Lagos.

However, the family was thrown into a bad state few days later after the 20-year-old was allegedly k*lled by policemen attached to Ejigbo Division.

The father of the dec^ased, Prophet Omisande Kolawole, said that the incident happened on June 15, 2013.....

This was what happened on that fateful day, Omisande said his son had gone to attend a friend’s birthday party but was k*lled on his way home.

He said, “My son went out to attend his friend’s birthday party not too far from our home. He said he would not stay long and we told him not to stay out too long. The following day, which was a Sunday, we did not see or hear from him and we began to panic.

“Later we heard that police embarked on a raid the previous night. We even thought he had been arr^sted. His mother, Grace Kolawole, and her nephew, Segun Adio, went to the Ejigbo Police Division but they were told that there were no suspects in their cell.

“Information got to us that they had seen my son’s c^rpse being conveyed by policemen. After about three hours later, the policemen opened up and told us that my son had been k*lled. My wife immediately fainted.”

Omisande said even after his wife had been revived, the police refused to take her statement as well as the statement of Adio, her nephew.

He said Adio and other residents set out to investigate what actually happened and it was discovered that his son was k*lled by a stray bullet which emanated from the g^n of a policeman popularly known as Oba.

He said, “We were told that around 8pm on the fateful day, Titan Hotel, located at Asaolu Close, was holding an event tagged Ladies’ night. At the hotel, one policeman popularly known as Oba was having a drink and dancing with a lady.

“We learnt that Oba left the hotel premises to receive a telephone call but on returning to the hotel, Oba got into a fight with a youth over the lady he was dancing with. The altercation degenerated into fist and serious case then Oba ran out of the premises and called his colleagues for back-up.

“When his colleagues arrived at the scene, a shoot-out ensued. During the shooting, my son, who was on his way home from another party was hit in the head by a stray bullet and d*ed instantly.”

Omisande said since his son’s k*lling, life had not been the same. He said his wife was hospitalised and was only recently discharged.

The dec^ased’s mother, Grace, who spoke to Our Correspond while fighting back tears, said everything was still like a dream.

“Olayinka was the first of my three children. My other children are still young and it feels as if all my labour has been in vain. I want justice for his d*ath”.

Omisande described his son as a responsible boy and wondered why the police would attempt to cover up his m^rder.

“The policemen at Ejigbo prevented us from seeing the Divisional Police Officer. We are being treated with comtempt because we are not rich. All we want is justice for our son’s m^rder.”

When contacted on the telephone, the spokesperson for the state police command, Ngozi Braide, confirmed Olayinka’s m^rder.

She said the matter would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba, for further investigation.

She said, “The DPO told me that around 2am on the said date, they received a distress call that cult members were fighting. On getting to the scene, the cult members fled but policemen discovered the young man’s c*rpse.

“The father of the dec^ased told the DPO that one policeman identified as Oba was responsible for his son’s d^ath. However, we have not been able to get the actual identity of the policeman. We are transferring the case to the SCID for further investigation.