Metro
DELTA: Residents protest against SARS
Residents of Ughelli in Delta State on Friday protested the alleged killing of a young man simply identified as Mr. Patrick by operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).
The SARS operatives reportedly shot the victim in the leg for refusing them access to his phone on Thursday.
The SARS team were further alleged to have left the victim at the scene with blood gushing out of his wounds.
It was gathered policemen from the Ughelli station later rushed the victim to the Ughelli Central Hospital where he was receiving medical treatment.
A witness reported: “The young man did not do anything. SARS operatives who were patrolling the area on Thursday stopped the victim and demanded that he must open his phone for them but he declined.
Read also: 5 burnt to death, 10 injured as bus tumbles, goes up in flames
“The operatives started beating him until they collected the phone from him, but he refused. He is a very humble boy in the area.
“When the incident was happening it was the women in the area that were bold enough to challenge them. When others were still flogging him, one of the operatives opened fire on his leg. They jumped into the vehicle and left.
“It was other police officers from the Ughelli Police Station that came to rush the man to hospital. He is there at the hospital as we speak.”
It was learnt that the protesters who set fire on tyres on major roads leading to the Ughelli Area Command called for an end to SARS operations, positing that several innocent persons have died from their onslaught.
One of the protesters, who only gave his name as Igho, called on police authorities in the state to ensure that justice was served the victim.
He said: “We no longer move freely because of SARS in Ughelli. Once they see two or three youths walking together, the next thing you will see is SARS operatives searching their phones.
“We cannot continue like this. The police authorities should investigate the incident and stop their men from maltreating people,” he stated.
Commissioner of Police, Mr Adeyinka Adeleke, said it was not clear if it was a policeman that shot the victim.
“Somebody was shot but we do not know if it was a policeman that shot the person,” the CP stated.
Join the conversation
Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism
Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.
As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.
If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.
Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.
INVESTIGATION: In Kwara, multimillion-naira milk processing plant is abandoned, converted to a chicken outlet
After the government spent millions of naira to establish a milk processing plant in Kwara State that would provided jobs...
SPECIAL REPORT: For Sokoto communities, promise of healthcare is akin to death sentence
In this story, ABDULRASHEED HAMMAD delves into the dire realities of Primary Health Care services in Sokoto State, shedding light...
ICYMI…SPECIAL REPORT: NNPCL hides behind PIA to frustrate disclosure, accountability
Nigeria’s major oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), in what appears to be a common practice of disregard...
INVESTIGATION: Multi-million naira Ekiti resort center remains uncompleted a decade after
The multimillion-naira project, expected to comprise recreational buildings, now consists of cassava farmland, a bush used for excretion, and a...
SPECIAL REPORT: Torturous experiences of students with disabilities in Oyo tertiary institutions
For students with disabilities in Oyo state-owned tertiary institutions, learning is a torturous and distressing experience, considering the building structures...