Customs detain four officers over civilian friend’s killing
The Nigeria Customs Service has said that four members of the patrol team involved in the killing of their civilian ‘friend’, Godwin Onoja, have been detained.
It also stated that a panel set up to
investigate the killing could not conclude its investigation because the
officer, who accidentally shot Onoja, Destiny Onebamho, was receiving
medical attention after he was attacked by motorists following the
killing.
Onoja was shot by a member of the
five-man Customs patrol team while they were trying to allegedly extort
N5,000 bribe from a group of travellers coming from Europe at the Sagamu
end of the Lagos-Ore-Benin Expressway.
It was gathered that the victim was shot
during an altercation between the officers of the Federal Operations
Unit of the NCS, Ikeja, Lagos, and the travellers, who boarded an Iyare
Motors’ passenger bus travelling to Benin City from Lagos.
A statement from the NCS Public
Relations Officer, Joseph Attah, on Tuesday, said Onebamho would be
questioned by the panel once fit to enable it conclude its investigation
and recommend appropriate actions to be taken against the operatives.
According to the statement, the
Comptroller-General of Customs, Col. Hameed Ali (retd.) has directed a
thorough investigation into the immediate and remote causes of the
incident with a view to ensuring that justice is served.
Attah stated, “Following the unfortunate
incident of Sunday, February 17, 2019, at the Sagamu interchange
involving operatives of the Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘A’, which led
to the death of a fellow citizen, Mr Godwin Onoja, the Nigeria Customs
Service has continued to maintain close contact with the bereaved
family.
“We are pained by this sad development
and share the grief of losing a fellow compatriot in a seemingly
avoidable circumstance. We will continue to take every necessary step to
cushion the pain associated with losing a dear one.
“In line with this directive, the investigation panel headed by the
Zonal Coordinator, Zone ‘A’, ACG Kaycee Ekekezie, has interrogated and
detained four members of the patrol team.
“The panel could not immediately
conclude the investigation because the actual officer, ASCI Destiny
Onebamho, whose rifle accidentally discharged and killed Onoja, is
presently receiving medical attention following the attack on him owing
to the unfortunate incident.
He will face the panel as soon as he is fit
to do so to enable the panel conclude investigation and recommend
appropriate actions.”
Attah added that the ongoing
investigation would be holistic and would involve looking at the weapon
handling skills of the operatives and actions that must be taken by the
service to prevent future occurrences.
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