Soldiers brutalise Lagos lawyer

The Punch reports that some soldiers have reportedly battered a Lagos-based lawyer, Adeyemi Akintoye for ‘walking slowly on the road’. Akintoye, who is currently receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital in Yaba area of Lagos state was said to have beaten to stupor as one of the military men identified as Uko Obasi, from the tailoring department of the Ordinance Barracks, Yaba, allegedly kicked Akintoye repeatedly near Tejuosho Market, Ojuelegba Road, Yaba.



The assault reportedly occurred at about 6pm on Thursday at the time Akintoye was on his way returning from work, during which the lawyer was dispossessed of a sum of N350,000 he had collected from a client. It was gathered that at that time, Akintoye, who held a folder containing the money, was trekking home from work and the soldiers, who were behind him, reportedly ordered him to walk faster.

The legal practitioner reportedly replied that he was not obstructing their movement because the road was wide enough for everyone to pass, a statement which infuriated the soldiers who pounced on him in revenge. A crowd which had gathered at the scene held on to Obasi when the lawyer fell and became still, while the soldier’s colleague fled the scene.

The pair were soon taken to the Ordinance Barracks and the authorities assured that they would get back to the lawyer after carefully investigating the matter which was also later reported at the Sabo Police Division.
The 33-year-old lawyer, who spoke with The Punch after his ordeal, explained that the soldiers were at the verge of escaping from the scene during the encounter, noting also that his wallet and folder containing about N350,000, paid by one of his clients, has gone missing.

“I was coming from work on Thursday around 6pm. Near the Yaba Market, I heard a voice behind me saying, ‘Walk faster. Do you think this is your sitting room?’ I replied, ‘The space is wide enough for anyone to pass’. I received a slap from behind immediately. “When I looked back and saw two soldiers, I said, ‘What is my offence?’ I received another slap and they started beating me up. “They were with daggers. They punched me and kicked me with their boots. People were shouting that I would die. “In the commotion, my wallet and ATM cards were stolen.

My folder containing N350,000 was stolen. It was given to me as part payment by a client. Blood was streaming down my face. When they saw the blood, they wanted to escape. “But I held on to one of them. People gathered and started taking photographs. The other soldier escaped. I did not know that a senior police officer was around and watching,” the battered lawyer narrated. On what transpired after being taken to the barracks,

Akintoye said: “It was the police officer who took both of us to the barracks. At the barracks, one of the senior military officers said I was a ‘bloody civilian’ and could be beaten up by soldiers.

“Another officer apologised and took my contact details, saying the military would get back to me. I went to a hospital immediately to get treatment for the injuries I sustained.”

Colonel Kingsley Samuel, spokesperson for the Nigerian Army, Division 81, in his reaction, said: “We are going to investigate the matter. But let the lawyer give a better description of the barracks so we can be sure where the soldiers are attached.”