Lagos State Police Command has begun an investigation into the death of a mentally-challenged woman on whom jungle justice was carried out after being accused of stealing a baby and possessing three AK-47 rifles, underneath the bridge at Abule Ado, Festac area on Monday, May 24, 2021.
The woman was reportedly killed by a mob, after which her body was set on fire.
Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, who spoke on the incident on Tuesday, May 25, on behalf of the Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, said that preliminary investigation revealed that the mentally-challenged woman had been living in the area for several years before she was lynched and set ablaze by some hoodlums in the area.
He said: “The Command wishes to state categorically that the woman was just murdered for reasons best known to the perpetrators of the heinous crime, as investigation revealed that no baby and AK-47 rifles were found in her possession, neither were they recovered by the perpetrators or the police. It’s just a clear case of murder.
“The Commissioner of Police has therefore ordered that the matter be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba, Lagos, for proper investigation, and the culprits should be arrested and charged to court with murder.”
Warning against jungle justice, which he described as inhumane, criminal and detrimental to smooth administration of criminal justice, Odumosu said that the command would not tolerate such an act, as the long arm of the law would catch up with anyone or group of persons who engage in such in the state.
