Igando residents allegedly killed three suspected members of a robbery gang who invaded their community, then dumped their bodies in a canal.
Residents claim the suspects were members of the “One Million Boys” robbery gang, who had earlier written a letter warning residents to keep money for them that they were going to pay them a visit, Vanguard reports.
The bodies of the three robbery suspects were found floating on a canal by the link bridge between Igando/Abaranje, on Tuesday afternoon, April 21.
A resident, Mr Ojo Majekodunmi, explained to Vanguard how the men were caught and killed.
He said: “ On Monday night, there was an uproar everywhere that these bad boys were approaching our area. We armed ourselves with cutlasses and took positions. But we did not see them until 5am when we heard they were at Sadiku Olowora street. By the time we got there, the vigilante group whose members are OPC had already overpowered three of them.
“Cutlasses and a lighter was found on them. During interrogation, one of them said the lighter was meant to burn victims’ window nets, in order to gain access into their apartments”.
Another resident, Kelechi Nwamobi, told the publication, ”One of the suspects said they didn’t mean to kill anyone. In his dying state, he begged everyone he had stolen from since the lockdown started, to forgive him, saying, they were forced to burgle homes because of hunger”.
The publication adds that it was later discovered that the robbers who were lynched were not members of the One Million Boys gang, but were hungry burglars.
Seven people who formed the vigilante group that apprehended the three burglars have been arrested by policemen from Ikotun division. They were faulted for taking laws into their hands by carrying out jungle justice on the suspects, who were said to have been without any gun, as initially claimed by residents.
Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Police Command, CP Hakeem Odumosu, has ordered for further investigation into the matter.
