Photo: 23-year-old man slaughtered in Lagos

A 23-year-old man, simply identified as Dada, was at the weekend, slaughtered to death as some hoodlums invaded Iya Agan Street on Old Apapa Road in the Ebute-Meta area of Lagos State.

The unidentified hoodlums, who were armed with guns and cutlasses, allegedly asked residents not to panic while they slaughtered Dada, alias Ratio at about 5:30 pm, saying they did not come for innocent lives.

It was gathered that anxious residents contacted the vigilance group in the area, which in turn contacted the Iponri Police Division. However, when policemen arrived at the scene, Dada’s corpse was recovered, but the hoodlums had fled

Some of the residents, yesterday, said they wanted to flee when they heard the gunshots, but the hoodlums calmed them down, saying they only trailed a rival member to the area, and they had no plan to unleash terror on anyone.

One of the executives of the vigilance group, Mr. Ishola Agbodemu, told The Punch that one of the hoodlums, identified only as Ayo, was caught on Saturday and handed over to the Anti-Robbery Section of the State Department of Criminal Investigation, Yaba.

According to Agbodemu, “The hoodlums wanted to start reprisals in our area, but we brought out vigilance group members to apprehend them. On Saturday, one of the suspects, Ayo, was caught with weapons. They were actually three, but we caught one of them.

“He is at the SDCI, and the police are interrogating him.”

A resident, who did not want her name in print, said Dada was known to be moving with the Fagbayimu Boys, adding that rival hoodlums, trailed him to the area.

She said, “Those hoodlums had come on Tuesday to attack a shop owner and collected his phones and money. So, when we saw them again on Friday, we were afraid. But they said they knew the person they were looking for. Minutes later, they found Dada and started shooting at him.

“There was a man who came to repair his car at a mechanic workshop at that time, he left his car and climbed a fence in fear. But the hoodlums continued to assure people around the scene that they should not run.

“When we told the man on the fence that the hoodlums had gone and he should come down, he refused.

“I do not know the deceased’s family members, but he was usually seen with the Fagabayimu Boys,” the unnamed resident noted.

A shop owner, who gave his name only as Abimbola, said the attackers came in two tricycles, otherwise known as Keke Marwa, adding that “the gunshots did not have effect, they slaughtered him with a cutlass.”

Confirming the killing, the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos said investigation was ongoing.