Mr. Mohammed Ibrahim, a cattle dealer at Kara market, Isheri-Berger, Ogun State has been talking about why he believes men of the Obada Police Station in Abeokuta, Ogun State beat up his 20-year-old son, Jubrin Mohammed, to death.
He said the police deceived him last Friday that Jubrin, who was arrested on December 14, took ill and was taken to a hospital in Abeokuta where he died.
Ibrahim said when the police on Monday finally admitted that his son was dead; they refused to release the body for burial.
Ogun State Command spokesman Abimbola Oyeyemi referred The Nation to the Zone 2 Police Command, under whose jurisdiction the Obada Police Station fell.
Zone 2 Command’s Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mrs Dolapo Badmus, a Chief Superintendent (CSP), confirmed Jubrin’s death.
But, according to her, he died of possible stomach or kidney ailment in an undisclosed hospital.
She said contrary to the deceased’s father allegation, Jubrin was never tortured by the Police.
She explained that the body would be released after an autopsy.
Badmus said: “A case of stolen goods worth N10million was reported. It was later transferred to the Zonal Intervention Squad, which was able to unravel the case and the deceased was one of four or five suspects rounded up.
“He confessed to the crime. He was followed to where he sold his own portion. The goods were recovered from the receiver.
“He confessed to the crime without being tortured. But while in detention, he said he was having stomach ache and they had to take him to the clinic.
“Prior to that, the father said he had been suffering from maybe ulcer or kidney problem. The man even brought medication that he used, which our men said they could not administer to him until he got to a hospital, to be on a safe side.
“Getting to the hospital, I think they battled to save him, but he gave up the ghost.
“The father is saying he wants to take the body; the normal thing is that autopsy must be done. So, the body is awaiting an autopsy.
“But he was involved in that case and the receiver is still alive and has testified to the boy selling the goods to him. It was a gang of people engaged in stealing items and they stole this one from their employer.”
When The Nation sought the name of the hospital where Jubrin died, Badmus said: “I need to re-confirm that. I don’t know it.”
Ibrahim, from Bornu State, denied that his son suffered from any stomach or kidney ailment before his death, and that he was rarely ill.
He said Jubrin was a guard at Barka Nigeria Ltd, Km 12, Magboro, Ibafo, Ogun State.
Barka, an industrial equipment supplier, is owned by a Lebanese, Mr Mahmoud Jamal.
Jubrin had been working at the company since January and was on a monthly salary of N30,000.
Ibrahim said Jubrin was arrested on December 14 and detained alongside four others: a guard, the company’s manager and two other workers.
They were accused of stealing an industrial machine among other goods, he said.
Ibrahim said: “Mahmoud Jamal went abroad and a day or so after he returned to Nigeria, some workers of the company asked my son and his co-guard to clean up the warehouse before Jamal’s arrival at the company.
“When the workers opened the warehouse, they claimed that some goods were missing. They asked the guards what happened.
“My son told them he did not know anything about it, because he did not even have a key to the warehouse. That it was the company’s workers that had custody of the key and they should be the ones to answer that question.
“The workers called the Lebanese owner and he directed them to invite the police.
“The police came and my son and other people were arrested and taken to the Ibafo Police Station in Ogun State.
“That was on Friday, December 14. I went to the station on Monday, December 17 and bailed my son. The police collected N30,000 from me before releasing my son. We went home.
“Last Thursday, they called us to report at the station. I asked Jubrin and his co-guard to go. Not up to three hours later, my son called me from the station and said ‘Daddy, I’ve just been told we will be transferred to Obada Police Station in Abeokuta.’
“I rushed down to Ibafo, but they had already been transferred by the time I got there.
“The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) at Ibafo warned his men not to harm my son, because he had been cooperating and would give the police the information they needed.
“We were told that two of the other three suspects that were arrested alongside my son and his co-guard, committed the theft.
“One of them is a manager at the company, while the other two are workers.
“The next day (last Friday) when I got to Obada Police Station in Abeokuta, my son had been seriously tortured. He could not walk. Jubrin said ‘Baba, I have never received this kind of beating before in my life.’ He was in pains. He told me he was beaten up and hung on a pole. I became sad. I didn’t know what to do. Who could I tell? I gave him N3000 to buy food and promised to return the next day or Monday.
“A policeman asked me to return on Saturday. I told him I would probably not be able to and besides they would not grant him bail on a Saturday.
“When I returned to the station on Monday, I was told Jubrin had been taken to hospital. I waited for some hours and, when they didn’t bring back my son, I called the Investigative Police Officer’s (IPO)’s number. He didn’t tell me his name, but True Caller identified him as Ojekunle Oladapo aka Pastor. The IPO told me to go and see Oga. I don’t know the Oga’s rank or whether he was the DPO, but we went and saw him.
“The Oga asked me if my son was ill, or if he was often ill. I said no. That since the day he was born, he had not fallen ill easily. They asked his co-guard whether my son had been ill or was often ill. The guard said no.
“That’s when they told me, ‘this your son don die oh.’
“I was shocked. I didn’t know what to do. So, I said, ‘Okay, give me his body so I can go and bury him. I don’t want him to be here till tomorrow or the day after.’
They said no – that they needed to carry out an autopsy to determine the cause of his death. They asked me to come back the next day (Tuesday).
“I got angry and left. I returned on Monday night but the IPO told me that Tuesday was no longer feasible- that I should return on Friday (tomorrow).”
Ibrahim said during his detention, Jubrin told him that he explained all he knew about the theft to the IPO at Ibafo.
He said his son told the police that while his boss was away, some of the company’s workers approached the guards and sought their cooperation to burgle the company.
“They promised to pay them handsomely. He and the other guards pretended to agree, but decided among themselves to catch the thieves in the act and hand them over to the police.
“The theft was planned for this week, but Jamal returned earlier than planned.”
Ibrahim said Jubrin also told the police that one of the detainees asked them not to confess. The detainee told Jubrin that the buyer of the stolen machine would give each of them N2million.”
He implored the police to release his son so that he could be given a befitting burial.
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
