By Emma Njoku and Chris Oji
An unidentified policeman was said to have been beaten to a stupor by a mob, yesterday, after a man, simply identified as Yusuf, was hit by a BRT bus from the impact of being allegedly pushed by policemen in the Ketu area of Lagos State.
Witnesses at the scene said the policeman and his colleagues attempted to dispossess Yusuf of his vehicle when he got pushed into the BRT lane. In the process, one of the BRT buses plying the lane inward Lagos rammed into Yusuf, who collapsed due to the impact of the crash.
A witness, who did not want her name in print, said the policemen were responsible for Yusuf’s ordeal, adding that he sustained varying degrees of injury as a result of the incident.
“The policemen were trying to dispossess the man of his vehicle and, in the process, they pushed him on the BRT lane and an incoming bus hit him,” the eyewitness said.
Another witness, who also pleaded anonymity, said the policemen, after realising that Yusuf had been crushed by the BRT, attempted to flee the scene, but an angry mob apprehended one of them.
He said: “An angry mob beat the policeman till he fainted. The man sustained serious injuries and he is lying unconscious on the floor because he has lost a lot of blood.”
Daily Sun gathered that some good Samaritan poured water on the policeman to make him regain consciousness. It was also gathered that one of his colleagues attempted to rescue him. The uniform of the brutalised policeman was said to have been torn by the angry mob.
When contacted, Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Benjamin Hundeyin, said it was a lie that the police beat up the man and that a policeman was beaten to a stupor.
He said: “This was a road accident that occurred when a BRT bus hit a minibus that had been stopped by the police for illegally using the BRT lane.
“The person with the bloodied hand was not shot at all, let alone by the police.
The person on the floor is a policeman, but was not beaten to stupor by anyone. They both were victims of the same accident. They have been rescued and are currently stable. Beating to stupor takes more than a second. How come there is no video or picture of the beating while it lasted?”