Penultimate Thursday when Okey Domeji, a 45- year-old businessman was leaving his house at Anthony Village, Lagos to attend a Christian wake at Satellite Town, he was full of life. As he drove out of the house accompanied by his wife of 14 years, Linda, none of them had a premonition that that would be the family breadwinner’s last journey on earth.
According to the widow, Okey, as he was fondly called by her, was discussing a lot of things with her including business and family matters. They had arrived their host’s place without any hitch. While at the wake, they met a lot of other relations they have not seen a long time.
However, as it was getting dark, Okey was reported to have sought the permission of his host, retired Commodore Clifford Akalene to leave the venue promising that he would be present at the retired military chief’s village in Imo State where the final burial ceremony of his wife that had just passed away would take place.
However, barely 30 minutes after departing the ceremony, tragedy struck. Defiant policemen, who appeared to have sworn never not to obey Inspector General of Police’s order to dismantle all checkpoints across the country, mounted their their illegal toll point at Mile 2 on the fateful day.
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Their bid to extort money from the victim led to the accident that claimed the businessman’s life. Notwithstanding IGP’s ban on checkpoints, police in Lagos on a normal day set up an average of 10 extortion tolls between the Mile 2 train station pedestrian bridge and the Mile 2 main bridge, a distance of about 500 metres, thus creating hell of traffic on the ever busy Mile 2-Badagry highway.
Recalling how the incident that claimed the life of her husband took place, Linda, amid sobs, said: “We were approaching Mile 2. It was about 7 pm or thereafter and we were to negotiate this bend before connecting Apapa-Oshodi expressway when this policeman carrying a rifle just came out from nowhere and started barking at my husband, park, park, my husband was telling him to allow him park very well, but the policeman as if he was under the influence of hard drug or a spell insisted he must park, and this was in the middle of the road. We became confused. But what happened next took us by surprise as the policeman corked his gun and threatened to shoot Okey if he didn’t obey his instructions. Having no choice, my husband had to park his car, and it was at this point that the tragedy occurred.
According to her, Okey had barely stepped out of the car and was about approaching the policeman for further explanations when a fast moving petrol tanker hit her husband, and dragged his mangled body several metres away from the spot.
“It was a horrific sight. I couldn’t believe my eyes. My husband was shouting, this policeman has killed me o, please save my life, don’t let me die. His body was already socked in blood. What, however, shocked me was this policeman that corked his rifle at us and who saw the tanker fast approaching us quickly jumped to safety. He and the other three policemen that were on duty with him quickly took to their heels with one of them saying that the man don die o.”
The widow further added that it was the driver of he tanker and one good Samaritan that later helped her to carry her husband into the car while she inquired about the nearest hospital to the place.
“At this point, he was still breathing. He was saying that he shouldn’t be allowed to die. However, on getting to the hospital, workers on duty and nurses told us that they can’t handle his case. They referred us to LUTH and Orthopaedic Hospital at Igbobi. We went to another nearby hospital, it was the same story of rejection. They also referred us to LUTH and Igbobi,” she said.
The widow, however, added that by the time they got to Igbobi Orthopaedic Hospital that she observed that her late husband was no longer breathing and talking.
Her worst fear was eventually confirmed when medical personnel at the Orthopaedic Hospital directed her and the good Samaritans that accompanied her to take the body to the hospital’s morgue.
“Initially, I thought that they were taking my husband to the theatre room for emergency operation, but when he got to the place, and I saw mortuary boldly written there that I realised that Okey was dead,” she stated amid wailing.
While saying that her life cannot be the same again, Linda accused the police of turning her into a widow at the prime of her life.
She called on the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase to ensure that justice is done in her case.
“If those policemen had allowed Okey to park his car very well, he would have been alive today. I’m still baffled as to why they had to stop him in the middle of the road. The policeman was corking his gun and threatening to shoot. His eye balls were red. But look at what they have done to me now,” she said.
Asking nobody in particular while looking into space, Linda, who was being consoled by some neighbours, said:
“Who will now become father of my two boys again? At 35 I have suddenly become a widow. How am I going to survive? Who can be like their father? What will I tell them when they grow up? These policemen have dimmed the star in my life. I want justice. Please, I want justice to be done,” she declared.
It was gathered that since the incident happened, whenever she set her eyes on the two young kids, Wesley and Byron whenever they bring them back from school, she always bursts into tears. However, while saying that the bereaved family members have been trying to console Linda and the two young boys left behind by the deceased, the widow’s elder brother, Frank Ibezim, described Okey’s death as devastating.
According to him: “Most of us are still in shock. Okey’s premature death was avoidable – only God knows why those policemen behaved the way they did. Whether they were even sent to kill him, we don’t know. Why they refused to allow him to park very well should be found by the police officers investigating this case. Again, why did that policeman that threatened to shot him jumped to safety when he saw the tanker coming at a high speed and he failed to tell Okey to jump to safety as well. Okey was backing the direction from where the tanker was coming from while the policeman was facing that direction.
We are calling on the Lagos State Commissioner of Police and the Inspector-General of Police to ensure that justice is done in this case. Those erring policemen should be brought to justice.”
Describing the deceased as a philanthropist and young successful entrepreneur, Frank said: “Okey was loved by everybody. We are all in a state of mourning. We don’t even know how to break the news of his death to his mother in the village. Okey was generous to a fault. Even on the day he lost his life in that tragic incident, he sent N200,000 to me in Enugu. He asked me to use the money to buy a cow which he donated to a family that was having the final burial ceremony of their late head of family. Okey was into many businesses. He was into telecommunications venture, publishing and he made a success of everything he touched — we will ensure that his death is not in vain.”
Also it was gathered that the four policemen that were involved during the ill-fated search operation had been arrested, and are currently being detained at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, pending conclusion of investigations into the case.
At Panti last Friday and also the following Monday when the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the department held meetings with family members, assurances were given that there would be no cover-up in the case.
However, the deceased’s family members, and their lawyer, Barrister Chukwu Omeogo, insisted that they would not relent until the erring policemen are brought to trial.
“Although the police have continued with their investigations, they have been to the house to take the widow’s statement, they have also been to the mortuary to see the corpse and to speak with the medical personnel on duty that night. They have also given assurance that there won’t be any cover-up, but we are not leaving anything to chance. We want those erring policemen to be brought to justice to serve as a deterrent to others,” Omeogo said.
Confirming police investigation into the case, the Police Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Command, Kenneth Nwosu said no stone will be left unturned in order to unravel the circumstances that led to the businessman’s death.
“Investigation into the matter is ongoing. Police are leaving no stone unturned. We are assuring the family of the deceased that justice will be done at the end of our investigations.”
Culled - SaturdaySun
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