The Lagos State Police Command has said two students of Bab Fafunwa Millennium School, in Ojodu, Lagos, were killed by a truck driver, Bolaji Kabiru, on Tuesday
The truck driver knocked down the students after school hours, leading to a protest by their angry colleagues.
There had been reports that 15 to 17 students were killed in the accident but the state police command has dismissed that.
The Command’s Public Relations Officer, CSP Adekunle Ajisebutu, debunked the double figure casualty figure in a statement titled, ‘Fatal Motor/Pedestrians Accident At Ojodu Involving Students’.
The statement read in part, “As a result of the accident, two males died on the spot, seven females and five males totalling twelve victims sustained varying degrees of injuries
“Traffic personnel from the Motor Traffic Department of the Ojodu Police Division immediately visited the scene. Corpses of the dead students (identities not yet known) were evacuated with the support of officers of the FRSC (Federal Road Safety Corps) and were deposited at the Morgue of the Mainland Hospital, Yaba, for autopsy.
“The injured victims were taken to God’s Apple City Hospital, Ojodu Berger; St. Michael Hospital, Ojodu; and the Lagos State Emergency Hospital, Toll Gate.”
The police had earlier announced the arrest of the driver, identified as Kabiru.
Reacting to the protest that followed the accident during which some students burnt the truck and some other vehicles, Ajisebutu said, “They also attacked the Ojodu Police Station in their large number, demanding the release of the driver for jungle justice
“However, when their demand was not met, they became violent. In the process, they destroyed four vehicles parked in the premises of the police station and another mobile truck on the highway.
“To avoid total breakdown of law and order, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, immediately ordered the deployment of policemen comprising tactical teams, Rapid Response Squad and others to the scene to maintain law and order.
“The protesters were professionally dispersed with minimum force without resulting to any further injury.”
