An Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) was at the weekend stabbed to death in a fracas between some naval personnel and policemen in Lagos State.
Three other passersby also sustained varying degrees of wounds in the bloody fracas that occurred in the Satellite town of Lagos.
The fracas caused heavy pandemonium in the area as shop owners fled for fear of being caught up in the fight.
Many people were injured as the angry naval personnel were said to have attacked passersby who tried to mediate in the clash between the two security agencies.
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A commercial bus driver, Steven Ogbodeto, said he saw a police patrol team arguing over an undisclosed issue with some navy officers. He said he had stopped to see if he could wade in and settle the dispute, but that the naval personnel went wild and began to fight the policemen.
A police officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity as he was not supposed to speak with the press, said: “The naval personnel stabbed our men with jack knives. We were able to rush our men and three other passersby to Adeyemi Private Hospital, but ASP Abion Hezikel could not make it as he was confirmed dead by the doctor on duty. Anyway, the other officers and three passersby who were so stabbed were treated and discharged.
“Two of the naval personnel have been arrested while two others are at large, but we have reported the incident to the military authorities to enable them to release the other two fleeing personnel of the Navy.”
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed the attack on policemen on duty, adding that the case was under investigation.
He said the case had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Panti, Yaba, Lagos, while the corpse of the deceased had been deposited at a public mortuary in Yaba.
However, the Command Information Officer, Western Naval Command, Edward Yeibo, told our correspondent on phone that the fracas started as a result of a traffic infraction between two naval ratings and some policemen in the area.
Yeibo, a commander with the Nigerian Navy, said in the process, some policemen, along with some urchins who arrived at the scene started a fight with the ratings.
“Some policemen arrived at the scene on a motorcycle and started firing. Presently, an investigation is being conducted to ascertain the actual cause of the incident. The outcome of the investigation would be made public,” he said.
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