drunken mobile policeman at Ketu area of Lagos
State, on Saturday, said the incident signalled the
end of her ‘world’. The woman, Beatrice Oyesolu, said
she was in the church on the fateful day, praying God
should guide and protect her children, unaware that
they had already been murdered in cold-blood by
Steven James.
The 32-year-old twins, Taiwo and Kehinde, were the
only children of Oyesolu. Her husband died last year.
The children were killed along with their friend,
Jejelola, at Plaulson Plaza, Ketu. The trigger-happy
sergeant, after killing the three men, turned the gun
on himself. Taiwo was a naval officer, while Kehinde
worked with Conoil.
The old woman, who had been crying since
Saturday when she heard the news of her sons’
death, said: “I was praying fervently in the church
when my phone rang. The call was from my boys.
I did not pick it until after the church service. The
missed calls were from Kehinde. After the church
service, I called Kehinde, but somebody else, a
stranger, picked the call.
The person told me that my sons had been killed. I
immediately fainted. I was rushed to a nearby
hospital where I was revived.” The grieving
woman mumbled: “How do I start my life? My
children had been catering for me. I am 75 years
old; I can no longer do anything.
They brought chicken, clothes and other
Christmas gifts for me on Friday. “They promised
to celebrate the New Year with me in an elaborate
way. I did not know that Friday would be the last
time I would see them.” Oyesolu urged the Lagos
State government and other well-meaning
Nigerians to come to her aid, “because I can’t do
anything anymore. My kids were my helpers”.
The twins and their friend, Jejelola, were said to
have gone to the hotel to book room for one of
their friends, Shola, whose girlfriend was returning
from United Kingdom when the mobile policeman
opened fire on them because they refused to buy
beer for him and equally cautioned him to be a
responsible policeman.
A witness said: “The mobile policeman took some
bottles of beer and Alomo Bitter. He started
threatening the hotel guests. He said he was going to
shoot and kill them. He said he would kill 30 people,
unfortunately, he shot the twins and their friend
before killing himself.” Recalling the last moment of
the twins, another witness said that Taiwo, who was
serving in Abuja, attempted to hide at the back of a
container after James shot Kehinde.
He said: “Taiwo tried to hide, but the policeman
chased him. He found and dragged him out of his
hideout. He shot him point blank in the chest. There
was no way he could have survived.” Another
regular guest at the hotel, Supo, said that
sometimes in August 2015, he was almost shot
and killed by James.
According to him, he escaped death by a whisker
through divine intervention. He said: “The mobile
policeman had been misbehaving for long. But the
management of the hotel never cautioned him. He
once threatened to kill me and then killed himself
for reason I still could not fathom. A few days
ago, I went to him and asked what my offence
was; he said I was a proud person.
He asked how a young man like me could be
lodging in a hotel.” Supo said that the killing of the
three men pained him. He added: “When he
threatened to shoot and kill me and kill himself, I
immediately reported to the manager of the hotel.
He promised the hotel management would do
something about it.
But they apparently did not do anything. He had
now killed three promising young men. “Whenever
I was going to the hotel after my first encountered
with the policeman, I always go with N500 to
pacify him. I don’t want to die. Four days ago
when I visited the hotel, I gave him money again.”
When our correspondent visited the area, the hotel
has been vandalised by some of angry youths in
the community. Some youths were sighted
washing blood stains of the deceased.
The remains of the deceased were said to have
been deposited at the Ikorodu General Hospital
mortuary. The Lagos State Commissioner of
Police, Mr. Fatai Owoseni, who visited the area,
described the incident as very “pathetic and
unfortunate.” He said: “I came to see the affected
family members and also sympathised with them.
I bring the message of the Inspector General of
Police (IG) to the bereaved family members. What
happened today is against the doctrine of the IG.
The IG said we should respect the rights of every
citizen. “Policemen should not be posted to
unauthorised place. Even if they do, they should
conduct themselves in a civil manner and also
respect the rights of every people.” The
commissioner also said that James would be
dismissed posthumously.
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