Three weeks after Pius Ogwuche lost his life during a fracas with a soldier in front of the Ojo Military Cantonment in Lagos, the deceased man's family has begun to worry that the officers of the Nigerian Army may be planning to avert justice.
"It's over two weeks since we reported the case to the Military Police of the Ojo Military Cantonment and we have not heard anything again," said Sunday Ogwuche, the deceased's younger brother.
Drama and death
Narrating the incident that led to the death of Mr. Ogwuche, 52, a commercial bus driver, on that Friday evening, November 26, Kabiru Bala, an eyewitness said that they had closed work for the day and were driving home when the chain of events that eventually led to the death of his boss began to unfold.
"At the Barrack U-turn where we were about to turn, a soldier man's bus came from behind and hit my driver's bus," said Mr. Bala, who worked as the deceased's conductor. "My driver came down from his bus and said ‘Oga, why did you hit me?' and the soldier man said ‘Between both of us, who hit each other?'"
According to Mr. Bala who identified the military officer's bus registration number as XU 945 FST, rather than show remorse, the military officer began to claim that he was right and started beating and slapping Mr. Ogwuche.
"My driver (Mr. Ogwuche) left him and was about entering his own bus when the soldier man jacked and pulled him out and asked: ‘Where do you think you are going?' And my oga said: ‘I am only respecting you because of your uniform.' And that was when the soldier man started punching him up to the point that his ear started bleeding."
Mr. Bala said that the deceased left the military officer and crossed to the other side of the expressway but when he saw that the officer was pulling away in his bus, he ran back and drove after him.
"My driver ran after the soldier man and double-crossed him. Another soldier man came and told my driver he should go away and treat himself instead of arguing with the soldier."
Mr. Ogwuche stood his ground and was trying to get hold of the military officer's bus key, according to Mr. Bala, when the officer knocked Mr Ogwuche out of the way with his bus. In the midst of the fracas that ensued, Mr Ogwuche slumped and became unconscious.
"The soldier man drove into the barracks and I took my driver to the hospital and the doctor confirmed him dead," said Mr. Bala.
‘Underhand arrangement'
According to Mr. Ogwuche's younger brother, Sunday, the military officer was apprehended days after the incident and kept in custody at the Military Police Department of the Ojo Military Cantonment with his name given as Okon Edet Essien.
"So far, the soldier has not been handed over to the Onireke Police Station where the case was reported for trial but, instead, the military is trying to make an underhand arrangement to aid the soldier in evading trial by a court of law," said Sunday.
At the Onireke Police Station, a police officer confirmed that they were yet to receive any feedback from their counterparts in the army.
"You know, this is going to be treated as a homicide case," said the police officer who did not disclose his name.
"So we are going to transfer it to Panti (State Criminal Investigation Department) for appropriate action," he said.
However, when NEXT visited the Military Police Department at Ojo Cantonment, an officer identified as W.F. David said that the department does not deal with the public.
"This is the Military Police," said the officer who also did not say if the alleged culprit was still in their custody, "If you need any information on the case, you can go to the Army Public Relations Unit at Kofo Abayomi."
At the Army Headquarters at Kofo Abayomi, Victoria Island, an officer at the Public Relations Unit declined to disclose the status of the investigation.
"If they (Ojo Cantonment) say they are investigating, then they are investigating. Do you think an investigation like this takes days?" said the officer identified as Captain Lawal. "By the way, what is your business in the case? Are you the man's family or lawyer?" he asked.
Despite Mr. Lawal's insistence that the army would try the culprit and invite the deceased's family to come and testify at the military hearing, it is gathered that the family has still not been contacted for this purpose three weeks after. As the family continues to wait for justice, Sunday said the upkeep of his late brother's wife and four children has become an additional burden that is stretching his meagre resources.
"The livelihood of our aged mother also depended on him (Pius) and now he is no more. We want to make sure that justice is done and the culprit made to face the consequences of his actions," said Sunday.
Source:http://234next.com/
"It's over two weeks since we reported the case to the Military Police of the Ojo Military Cantonment and we have not heard anything again," said Sunday Ogwuche, the deceased's younger brother.
Drama and death
Narrating the incident that led to the death of Mr. Ogwuche, 52, a commercial bus driver, on that Friday evening, November 26, Kabiru Bala, an eyewitness said that they had closed work for the day and were driving home when the chain of events that eventually led to the death of his boss began to unfold.
"At the Barrack U-turn where we were about to turn, a soldier man's bus came from behind and hit my driver's bus," said Mr. Bala, who worked as the deceased's conductor. "My driver came down from his bus and said ‘Oga, why did you hit me?' and the soldier man said ‘Between both of us, who hit each other?'"
According to Mr. Bala who identified the military officer's bus registration number as XU 945 FST, rather than show remorse, the military officer began to claim that he was right and started beating and slapping Mr. Ogwuche.
"My driver (Mr. Ogwuche) left him and was about entering his own bus when the soldier man jacked and pulled him out and asked: ‘Where do you think you are going?' And my oga said: ‘I am only respecting you because of your uniform.' And that was when the soldier man started punching him up to the point that his ear started bleeding."
Mr. Bala said that the deceased left the military officer and crossed to the other side of the expressway but when he saw that the officer was pulling away in his bus, he ran back and drove after him.
"My driver ran after the soldier man and double-crossed him. Another soldier man came and told my driver he should go away and treat himself instead of arguing with the soldier."
Mr. Ogwuche stood his ground and was trying to get hold of the military officer's bus key, according to Mr. Bala, when the officer knocked Mr Ogwuche out of the way with his bus. In the midst of the fracas that ensued, Mr Ogwuche slumped and became unconscious.
"The soldier man drove into the barracks and I took my driver to the hospital and the doctor confirmed him dead," said Mr. Bala.
‘Underhand arrangement'
According to Mr. Ogwuche's younger brother, Sunday, the military officer was apprehended days after the incident and kept in custody at the Military Police Department of the Ojo Military Cantonment with his name given as Okon Edet Essien.
"So far, the soldier has not been handed over to the Onireke Police Station where the case was reported for trial but, instead, the military is trying to make an underhand arrangement to aid the soldier in evading trial by a court of law," said Sunday.
At the Onireke Police Station, a police officer confirmed that they were yet to receive any feedback from their counterparts in the army.
"You know, this is going to be treated as a homicide case," said the police officer who did not disclose his name.
"So we are going to transfer it to Panti (State Criminal Investigation Department) for appropriate action," he said.
However, when NEXT visited the Military Police Department at Ojo Cantonment, an officer identified as W.F. David said that the department does not deal with the public.
"This is the Military Police," said the officer who also did not say if the alleged culprit was still in their custody, "If you need any information on the case, you can go to the Army Public Relations Unit at Kofo Abayomi."
At the Army Headquarters at Kofo Abayomi, Victoria Island, an officer at the Public Relations Unit declined to disclose the status of the investigation.
"If they (Ojo Cantonment) say they are investigating, then they are investigating. Do you think an investigation like this takes days?" said the officer identified as Captain Lawal. "By the way, what is your business in the case? Are you the man's family or lawyer?" he asked.
Despite Mr. Lawal's insistence that the army would try the culprit and invite the deceased's family to come and testify at the military hearing, it is gathered that the family has still not been contacted for this purpose three weeks after. As the family continues to wait for justice, Sunday said the upkeep of his late brother's wife and four children has become an additional burden that is stretching his meagre resources.
"The livelihood of our aged mother also depended on him (Pius) and now he is no more. We want to make sure that justice is done and the culprit made to face the consequences of his actions," said Sunday.
Source:http://234next.com/
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