Residents of Oremeji in the Shasha area of Alimosho Local Government, Lagos State, were thrown into fear on Sunday, November 9, after some street boys stabbed a Nigerian Air Force officer.
Multiple community members who spoke with our correspondent during a visit to the neighbourhood on Saturday said the trouble started after a disagreement between the officer—who “was not in uniform” at the time—and a group of boys on a football field.
A resident known as Baba explained, “Some boys were playing football on Oremeji Street here in Shasha when the ball hit the man, who was not in uniform.
“Nobody knew he was an officer. He tried to seize the ball and beat the boy who kicked it. People begged him, but he punched the boy, and others around tried to restrain him from causing more harm.
“When he noticed a crowd gathering, he brought out a knife from his pocket. He stabbed the ball and threatened that if anyone touched him, he would stab them. In the process, some of the boys trying to hold him back sustained injuries.
“A fight broke out, and one of the boys managed to collect the knife and stabbed him. Nobody still knew he was an officer. They rushed him to the hospital, but we later heard he didn’t survive the injury.”
Another resident, Sola, added that Air Force personnel later invaded the area in retaliation.
He said, “Air Force officers stormed the area. They beat up some people while searching for the boy and his family. They were from the Shasha base.
“Everyone in the community is now living in fear. From that moment, the whole area has been in panic, and the police are not doing anything.”
Residents noted that the tension had spread towards the Orisumbare axis, leaving business owners unsettled.
Eniola, another resident, said most shop owners now shut down earlier than usual.
“We have been living in fear since the incident happened, and shop owners now close much earlier than expected. And this was after the air force officers came on the second and third day to assault and pick people up randomly. The people who committed the act had fled the community, and the innocent people are the ones getting punished for it,” she said.
Another resident, Esther Komolafe, recounted that Air Force personnel fired tear gas during one of the reprisals.
“We were driving along the route when we saw people running helter-skelter. We got closer to the exact spot before we realised that the air force officers had fired teargas. As I speak to you, the area is still tense, and we no longer take the route once it is evening,” she said.
However, contradicting the widespread belief that the officer had died, the Lagos State Police Command spokesperson, Abimbola Adebisi, clarified in a telephone conversation with PUNCH Metro on Monday that the officer survived.
Adebisi said, “There was a fight between some individuals, and after the fight, they realised that the injured person happened to be an Air Force officer. He was only injured; nobody died. Although the matter was not reported at the station, the DPO visited the scene but did not meet anyone there. He later identified the injured officer and confirmed he had received treatment and that he is alive.”
Responding to allegations of harassment by Air Force personnel, he added, “The claim that Air Force officers have been disturbing people is not true. There is nothing like that.
“Last Wednesday, when some of the officer’s colleagues attempted to retaliate, the DPO intervened along with community leaders, and the issue was resolved. The commandant of the Air Force was also engaged in a round-table discussion, and the area has been peaceful since then.”
Efforts to reach the Nigerian Air Force spokesperson, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, were unsuccessful, as calls to his phone went unanswered and WhatsApp messages sent on Monday had not been replied to at press time.
This incident mirrors past confrontations between civilians and military officers, including the 2021 unrest in Oshodi, when military personnel reportedly stormed the area “to avenge the death of an officer of the Nigerian Air Force, who was allegedly mobbed to death by hoodlums.”
Advertisement
