Some yet-to-be identified custom officers stationed at the Ilase Custom Checkpoint, along Owode-Idiroko Road, yesterday morning shot a heavily pregnant female passenger, Alhaja Fausat Ayode, to death and absconded for fear of the irate mob.
I gathered that when the incident happened, pandemonium erupted in the area as the irate mob made to brutalise the custom officers but they fled back to their unit at Owode-Idiroko.
It was also gathered that when the officers who were deployed to the checkpoint from the Federal Operating Unit (FOU), Owode-Idiroko, absconded, the mob numbering over 300 went on rampage, destroyed and set the checkpoint on fire.
When contacted, the Commanding Officer, Nigerian Army 192 Battalion, Owode, Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Ahmed, confirmed the story, adding that peace has been restored to the area through the efforts of his men.
He said, "At the Custom checkpoint at Ilase, acting on the suspicion that the said vehicle conveying the passengers including the deceased person were smugglers,
the custom officers tried to intercept the oncoming taxi.
"Preliminary investigations revealed that the taxi driver allegedly tried to manoeuver past the checkpoint as they were often wont to do but was stopped by the crack of the bullet.
"Eyewitness account said the officers probably tried to shoot at the tyres of the vehicle to incapacitate the car but he miscalculated and incidentally hit one of the passengers and she died on the spot."
He added, "I was informed by the Custom Controller General about the crisis and I mobilised my men to the area and restored peace because over 300 agitated youths from IIase and Idiroko had stormed and burnt down the checkpoint. The youths had also blocked the road causing serious traffic snarl.
"The speedy response by my men and the Operation MESA brought the situation under control and ensured that there was no casualty from the riot. For now, my men are still stationed in the area to forestall any re-occurrence of violence."
He however debunked claims that the custom officers were manhandled, adding that they had fled the scene once they realised the magnitude of their actions.
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