Lagos killings: Rights groups demand whereabouts of prime suspect

Rights groups have raised the alarm over what they described as the alleged disappearance of the prime suspect in the killings of Mr Sheriff Ishola Salami and Prince Kazeem Ademola Akinloye of Ajiran in Eti-Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State.

Sheriff Salami was reportedly ambushed and killed in Moba, Eti-Osa Local Government Area, on April 18, 2023, while Prince Kazeem Akinloye was allegedly murdered along Chevron Drive on August 26, 2024.

PidomNigeria Metro had earlier reported the arrest and arraignment of the prime suspect, who is alleged to have masterminded both killings.

Speaking during a press conference on Friday, the groups questioned the whereabouts of the suspect after he was allegedly rejected by the Ikoyi Correctional Centre on medical grounds, despite an order by Justice Muyideen of the Igbosere High Court remanding him there pending further proceedings.

Leading the call on behalf of the grieving families and residents of Ajiran, the President of the Centre for Human and Socio-Economic Rights, Comrade Alex Omotehinse, said the community had been left traumatised by the killings.

He described Ajiran as “a community paralysed by fear, with inhabitants who now sleep with one eye open.”

Omotehinse accused authorities of failing the victims and undermining the justice process.

“Today, we raise our voices because the very system meant to protect the innocent and punish the guilty has turned its back on these grieving families,” he said.

He noted that once the court ordered the suspect’s remand, responsibility for his custody shifted from the police to the Nigerian Correctional Service.

“At that point, custody of the prime suspect transitioned from police authority to the Correctional Service. Compliance with the court order was not discretionary but mandatory.

“We are worried that the integrity of our justice system is now under grave threat because of the wanton disregard for a court order.

“We have received credible and consistent reports indicating that the suspect was not remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre as ordered by the court. Correctional authorities allegedly declined custody, citing ill health.

“No medical documentation of the prime suspect’s ill health was certified by the court. No formal application was made to the court for a variation of its earlier order. The whereabouts of the suspect remain unknown as of this moment.”

According to him, the alleged failure to comply with the court’s directive suggested a deliberate attempt to frustrate the administration of justice.

“We wish to emphasise that this disregard for the court order appears to have been orchestrated with the connivance of individuals with statutory responsibility to uphold the rule of law and defend the integrity of the justice system.

“What we are witnessing is not a minor administrative lapse but a deliberate violation of a subsisting court order. We are deeply concerned about what appears to be a deliberate attempt to subvert the responsibility of the police to investigate crimes.

Also speaking, the Secretary of the Campaign for Democracy, Femi Lawson, described the alleged disappearance of the suspect after his arrest and arraignment as disturbing and unacceptable.

He argued that there was no justification for moving a suspect facing a capital offence away from lawful custody.

“The government has invested in a lot of infrastructure, including medical facilities. So there is no basis on which a suspect in such a capital offence should be shielded, taken away from police custody, taken away from the correctional centre, and now kept in a private facility, whatever they call it, in a place where it is easy to enjoy a beer, according to our report.

“We are insisting that, for the justice system to be seen as fair and transparent, the whereabouts of the suspect must be made known, not only to law enforcement but also to the victims, who are also crying for justice.”

Lawson further alleged compromise within the justice system and urged the Inspector-General of Police to order an independent investigation into the matter.

“You cannot continue to shield him, and we are also using this opportunity to call on the Inspector-General of Police because the police are also a party in this matter. Several police stations in Lagos have been accused of compromise.

“Today, we have seen documents extracted from the suspect, and we have seen visual evidence obtained from the suspect, which are before the courts, now being displayed under ring lights by some content creators and other funny characters. We need to get serious as a nation.

“We need to respect the sanctity of our judicial system. We cannot take justice away from the court and put it before ring lights or before some content creators and expect that the victims will get justice.

“We are calling on the IGP to demand a thorough investigation, not only into the matter but also into the role that some police officers are playing in it.”

He also called on the Minister of Interior and the Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service to investigate why the suspect was allegedly rejected by the Ikoyi Correctional Centre despite the court order.

“To the extent that justice will be seen to be done, we are also calling on the Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, under the leadership of the Minister of Interior, to ensure that the Correctional Service is not run in such a way that there is one treatment for VIPs and another for non-VIPs.

“The Ikoyi Correctional Centre has compromised the integrity of that institution.

“The Minister of Interior and the Controller-General must call for an investigation into why a suspect who had been ordered to be remanded was rejected by the Ikoyi Correctional Centre based on an alleged illness, without any medical report.

“Merely bringing a suspect in a vehicle and rejecting him without any verifiable medical report calls for an investigation. We are demanding that, within the next 48 hours, the whereabouts of this suspect be made known.”

When contacted on Sunday, the Public Relations Officer of the Lagos State Command of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Osho Onimisi, said he would need time to verify the claims.

“I will have to get more information on this tomorrow (Monday),” he told PidomNigeria Metro.