Tragedy struck on Tuesday when one Dairu Murtala, a Dangote truck driver ran over three men killing them instantly at Arepo, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
Murtala was said to be driving against the traffic when he crushed the victims, who were about to cross the expressway into the Arepo community.
It was learnt that despite the incident, the driver did not stop, but was chased by some motorcyclists to Magboro, a neighbouring community, where he was apprehended.
He was reportedly beaten to a pulp before the intervention of policemen from the Warewa division, who rescued him from the mob.
Officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps reportedly carried away the remains of the deceased, who were said to be workers of a company in Arepo.
A witness, who did not identify himself, said the accident happened around 8 a.m.
He said, “We were all at the bus stop when the truck sped past us. The driver did not even hoot.
“The three men, who wanted to cross the expressway, were only looking at a side of the road. They didn’t know that the truck was fast approaching from the other side.
“The truck crushed them and they died on the spot. It even dragged the body of a man for some distance.
“Another pedestrian, who saw the truck approaching, carried a lady that could have also been hit, off the road. The girl wanted to protest the action until she saw what had happened.”
A motorcycle rider, identified as Musa, told our correspondent that the driver did not stop the truck after the incident.
“My friends and I chased him to Magboro. When we caught up with him, we beat him up. We were hitting him when the police came to his rescue,” he added.
Our correspondent observed bloodstains on the expressway where the remains of the victims were picked by traffic officers.
A community leader in Arepo, Victor Olajide, appealed to the Federal Government to make provision for a pedestrian bridge at the junction, saying a lot of people had died while attempting to cross the expressway.
He said, “This has become a regular thing. I believe the way out is for pedestrian bridges to be constructed at the Arepo, Ibafo, Magboro and Mowe ends of the expressway, where there are settlements, to forestall avoidable loss of lives.”
The FRSC Ogun State Sector Commander, Clement Oladele, confirmed the incident.
He said, “The accident occurred at the Ibadan to Lagos route around 8am. The crash involved an ash coloured Dangote truck, with number plate DTF 118 XA. The truck driver hit three persons, all males, and killed them on the spot.
“The crash was caused by dangerous driving and route violation. The police apprehended the driver and towed away the truck, while an FRSC ambulance conveyed the corpses to the Sagamu Hospital mortuary.”
The Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the arrest of the driver, adding that investigations were on.
He noted that the families of the victims had yet to come forward to identify them, saying the driver would be prosecuted at the end of investigations.
Credit: punchng.com
