From Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
A tricycle spare parts dealer, Lucky Akoda, and a police officer were allegedly shot during a violent protest by youths against an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) raid in the Isihor axis of Benin-Lagos Road, Ovia North-East, Edo State, on Tuesday, May 20.
The protest, reportedly led by suspected internet fraudsters known as “Yahoo Yahoo boys”, turned chaotic, with a security van, believed to belong to a vigilante group, vandalised.
According to a source, the unrest began after EFCC operatives raided the area on Monday night, prompting young protesters to take to the streets on Tuesday. An eyewitness, speaking anonymously, said, “A tricycle spare parts dealer who opened for business on Tuesday morning was hit by a stray bullet when he was closing his shop and running to avoid the violence.” The injured dealer, Lucky Akoda, and the police officer were rushed to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) for treatment.
Akoda’s wife, Benedicta, found her husband handcuffed to his hospital bed, treated as a suspect despite being a victim. “It was unfair for a man who was hit by a stray bullet to be chained to the hospital bed,” the source said. Benedicta has pleaded with the police and Nigerians to save her husband, insisting, “He is a good Nigerian doing his legitimate business as a tricycle spare parts dealer and was not involved in the protest or internet fraud.”
The EFCC has since heightened security around its Benin Zonal office on High Court Road, with operatives conducting rigorous screenings at checkpoints.
Efforts to reach EFCC spokesperson Williams Oseghale for comment were unsuccessful.