It was deep mourning at the Lagos State Police Command on Thursday, September 23, 2021, when it lost one of its finest officers, CSP Kazeem Sumonu Abonde, to attacks by hoodlums during a raid on criminal hideouts in Ajao Estate.
Making this known in a statement on Friday, September 24, the command’s spokesman, CSP Adekunle Ajisebutu said that the incident occurred when tactical teams of the Command comprising men drawn from Rapid Response Squad, Taskforce, Ajao Estate Division and other divisions were carrying out raid of identified flashpoints and enforcing the ban on use of motorcycles in restricted areas in the estate and similar places.
Thenewsbearer learnt that the police officer, also a lawyer, was preparing towards his retirement in few months to start law practice when he was mowed down.
Ajisebutu stated that the exercise was a routine proactive approach aimed at curtailing activities of armed robbers and other criminal elements, before the hoodlums struck.
He noted that similar exercises had been carried out in the past in other parts of the state, which had resulted in reduction in crimes in the areas.
The PPRO explained: “After the successful operations, which led to the arrest of some of the suspects, other criminal elements and hoodlums in their large number laid siege to the exit of the estate and attacked the policemen with guns, cutlasses and other dangerous weapons.
Unfortunately, during the fatal attack, CSP Kazeem Sumonu Abonde attached to the Operations Department of the Command was brutally killed by the hoodlums. The DPO of Ajao Estate, CSP Abdullahi Malla and other police officers equally sustained varying degrees of injuries. The corpse of the deceased officer has been deposited at the Yaba Mainland Hospital for autopsy.”
Condemning the attack on the policemen who were carrying out legitimate duty at the time, the Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu directed a discreet investigation into the incident immediately, while he vowed to ensure that all suspects responsible for the dastardly act would be brought to book soon.
The Commissioner of Police also promised that the sad incident would not dampen the morale of the officers and policemen of the Command or discourage them from carrying out their statutory duties of protecting lives and property of the residents.
