Boy kills Lagos driver to date girlfriend

A 28-year-old bus driver, Abraham Umar,
has been killed by suspected cult members at Cele bus stop, in the
Ijanikin area of Lagos State.

The police said the victim was set up by his friend who was obsessed with his (Abraham’s) 17-year-old girlfriend.

Abraham, aka Abi, was eating at the girlfriend’s mother’s bamboo restaurant when the gunmen invaded the place around 9pm on Tuesday.

They reportedly shot the Benue State indigene in the head, killing him on the spot.

Our correspondent learnt that the case
was reported at the Ijanikin Police Station and the girlfriend,
identified only as Elo, was arrested.

A witness, who did not want to be
identified, said the gunmen came in a group after Abraham, who plied the
Lagos-Badagry Expressway route, parked his vehicle and went to eat.

He said, “He was with his conductor and
the owner of the commercial bus when one of the gunmen tapped him on the
back. Another one pushed him and slammed his head against the wall.
Then one of them put a gun to his head and shot him dead. Everybody ran
away.”

The victim’s sister, Aminat Umar, while fighting back tears, said Abraham’s friend, one Peter, broke the news to the family.

She explained that the victim had called her after parking his vehicle around 9.21pm.

“He said he was on his way home. About
10 minutes later, his best friend, Peter, rushed to our house, saying
Abi had been shot at Cele bus stop and that his corpse had been taken to
a police station.

 “My mother and uncle ran to the
Ijanikin Police Station, but were told that nobody was brought there.
They went to a private hospital around Cele bus stop and were again told
that the body was not brought to the hospital.

“The hospital workers said they should
check the station. The police later admitted that he was there. I was
told that his conductor and the owner of the commercial bus were in the
cell,” she added.

Our correspondent learnt that the deceased lost his father, a former naval officer, when he was barely six years old.

His foster father, Muhammed Umaru, said
Abraham had been receiving threat text messages from some men who asked
him to stop his relationship with Elo.

He said, “They told him to leave the girl because she belonged to one of them.

“My son’s friend, Peter, said the young
man behind the messages had once confronted them. I was told that the
rival was dark in complexion and had dreadlocks.

“I told his aunt and uncle, who asked
the girl to stay away from Abraham and also warned him to leave Elo
alone. But they refused to quit the relationship.”

The deceased’s uncle, Sani Umar, described him as gentle and easy-going.

He said, “He was a calm man and never
involved himself in any trouble. This incident is just unfortunate. The
problem was that the girl he was dating had another boyfriend who is a
cult member and that was why he was killed. We want justice; he must not
die in vain.”

Elo, 17, who had been arrested by the
police, however, said Abraham was her only boyfriend, adding that she
could not tell why he was killed.

“He called me last night (Tuesday),
saying he was going to my mum’s shop and if he could wait for me there. I
said he should not wait because I was at my brother’s place in Ajegunle
and would not be coming back that night. I told him that we were
planning my brother’s wedding. On Wednesday when I got back home, I was
told Abi had been killed. I don’t know about any threat because he did
not tell me about it,” she said.

A source said cult killings were rampant
in Ijanikin, adding that security operatives had not been able to curb
the activities of cult members in the area.

He called on the police authorities to come to the aid of residents.

He said, “The cult members go into
houses to kill people at will. Members of a family are still at a
hospital after they were attacked by these boys. Two weeks ago, two boys
were shot and killed at the bus stop because they refused to release
their phones.”

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Chike Oti, said four suspects had been arrested.

However, Oti noted that Abraham’s best friend set him up over the 17-year-old girlfriend.

He said, “Abraham’s friend had a crush
on the girl. It got to a point of obsession as he started talking to the
man’s girlfriend to leave him. However, when he was not getting the
desired cooperation from the girl, he set up his friend with some other
guys, who killed him.

“The matter was reported at the Ijankin
Police Station and immediately, the state Commissioner of Police, Edgal
Imohimi, ordered the Divisional Police Officer to fish out the
murderers. So far, the DPO has picked up four suspects, while the
principal suspect, the one who had a crush on the girl, is still at
large. We are on his trail and he cannot escape  justice.”

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