Rotimi Thompson a 41-year-old man in Oshun Egbado, Age-mowo, Morogbo area, has been beaten to death in the Baale’s palace over a missing motorcycle.
Ikechukwu Ewuji who was arrested in connection with the crime apparently first accused his housekeeper, Michael Bulete of the theft of the motorcycle. After interrogating Bulete for a while he admitted to having had a hand in it and disclosed its location to be where Thompson was.
Ewuji and a couple of his friends then went in a vehicle with Bulete to Thompson’s wife’s shop in the Adadagun area of Mowo on Wednesday.
PUNCH sources revealed that Ewuji made the woman to call her husband on the telephone on the pretext that he had a job for him.
Thompson’s did not answer the call.
They then took her in the vehicle and drove to the Baale’s palace: “When they got to the palace, they reached the man on the phone and asked him to come to the palace. On getting there, they asked him where the motorcycle was, but he said he did not know anything about it. They tied him and the housekeeper and beat them up.” Police sources stated.
“At a point, he became weak and slumped. Instead of attending to him, they said he was pretending. After a while, he opened his eyes and requested water. They gave him the water, but he could not take it.”
Thompson was then rushed to two different hospitals, where he was rejected, by the time they reached the third hospital around 1am on Thursday he was already dead.
“The man was beaten up in the presence of the baale. They also assaulted his wife. The baale is on the run. The housekeeper, the owner of the motorcycle, and two others have been arrested. The motorcycle has yet to be recovered,” the source said.
However, it seems that the housekeeper and victim had been beaten up before reaching the Baale’s palace. The baale’ was allegedly making enquiries over the case when the mob started another set of beatings.
“They rushed him to a hospital where he died. Baale is not running away from the police, but he is not around as I speak to you and I don’t have his phone number,” a resident, who identified himself simply as Daniel, said.
SP Chike Oti the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, verified the incident, saying
“One Rotimi Thompson aged 41, of Mosafejo Aradagun area, was reportedly beaten to death in the compound of the baale of Oshun Egbado, Age-Mowo in Morogbo, by some youths over an allegation of receiving a stolen motorcycle.
“The scene of the incident was visited and photographed by detectives while the corpse was deposited in the Badagry General Hospital morgue for autopsy. One Ikechukwu Iwuji, who owns the motorcycle, his friend and the housekeeper have been arrested, while effort is being made to track down other fleeing suspects, including the baale.
“The Commissioner of Police, Edgal Imohimi, has ordered that the baale and the other fleeing suspects be arrested. The command will not tolerate jungle justice in any way.”
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