Men of the Edo State Police Command have commenced investigation to unravel and bring to book the rampaging mob that attacked a middle aged man and had his wrist amputated in Sapele road by-pass in Ikpoba Okha local government area of Edo State weekend.
The man in a viral video whose name cannot be identified is in critical condition and admitted at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, UBTH where he narrated how he narrowly escaped death in the hands of his attackers.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the middle aged man was attacked with a machete by angry youths who brutalized him shortly after he was wrongly accused of stealing a motorcycle in the area.
It was gathered that the mob who left the victim in a pool of his own blood later returned to the scene of the incident to confirm his death.
After the hoodlums have left the crime scene, the victim, crawled on his belly from a bush path to a location where other residents of the area came to rescue him.
Concerned residents in the area quickly mobilized themselves and gave the hoodlums a hot chase and caught one of the fleeing attackers who was manhandled.
The severed wrist of the victim was placed on the head of the suspected attacker who confessed to the crime in a disturbing viral footage in the internet.
The injured victim were rushed to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, UBTH Accident and Emergency Ward for urgent medical care after some hospitals, rejected the victim.
Narrating his ordeal from hospital bed, the middle-aged man alleged that he was attacked alongside his younger brother whose whereabouts is unknown at the moment.
He said, “Yesterday (Friday), my younger brother and I were going to get an article at a nearby shop in my area around the Bypass. I saw a group of motorcycle riders from a nearly distance.
“I started sensing danger when they started advancing towards our direction. But, I had no reason to run because we didn’t commit any crime.
“Suddenly, they (hoodlums) stopped us and wanting to attack us. My brother and I started to run. As I was about to jump into a nearby uncompleted building in the area. They used a block to hit me on my head. I became unconscious and they left the scene
“About 30 minutes later, I regained consciousness, and realized that one of my wrists, had been cut off. I was feeling severe pain and bleeding seriously. I struggled to run into a nearby bush suspecting that they may return and kill me.
“While I was in the bush for over three hours, they came looking for me. But, I had to hide. After much search, they left again. When I noticed that they have gone, I crawled out of the bush path and alerted my neighbours who took me to the UBTH.
“Shortly after my arrival, information reached me that my attackers who stole their motorcycle has been caught, while people in my area were searching for my missing wrist.
“I am appealing to the Commissioner of Police to join me in fighting this fight. I plead with Nigerians to join me in fighting this fight because I now have one hand and I cannot fight for myself,” he declared.
However, in a statement, ASP Eno Ikoedem Deputy Police Public Relations officer Edo State Command, who confirmed the incident on Saturday in a statement, said, “The attention of the Edo State Police Command has been drawn to viral videos circulating on social media depicting two young men in distressing conditions”.
“In one of the video footages, a young man is seen lying on a hospital bed at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), with his hand allegedly severed from the wrist following an attack”, he said.
According to him, “Another video shows a different young man visibly brutalised, seated on the ground with a severed hand placed on his head”.
The Command assured the public that every necessary step will be taken to get to the root of the matter and ensure that justice is served.
The statement said in furtherance of this investigation, the Command is calling on the young men who appeared in the aforementioned videos, or anyone who can identify or establish contact with them, to please reach out urgently to the Office of the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) at the Edo State Police Command Headquarters, Benin City or call these numbers: 08077773721, 08037646272.
The statement urged members of the public to remain calm, avoid speculation, refrain from spreading unverified information that may cause panic or hinder police investigations.
The Command strongly condemned all forms of mob action, as such acts are criminal, unjustifiable, and contrary to the principles of law and order.
The statement also reminded citizens that no individual or group has the right to take the law into their own hands.
“The Edo State Police Command reiterates its zero tolerance for jungle justice and warns that anyone found participating in such acts will face the full weight of the law.
“The Command also appeals to residents to assist with credible information that will aid in the ongoing investigation”, the statement read.
