by Damilola Jagun

On Wednesday, 19 November, a dismissed Divisional Police Officer, DPO, Segun Fabunmi, attached to Pen Cinema Division of Lagos State Police Command, told a Lagos High Court that he could not explain how the ammunition allocated to him left his rifle.

Fabunmi is being tried for allegedly killing a certain Ademola Daramola and injuring others during the mass protest on fuel subsidy, organized by Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and Trade Union Congress, TUC, of Nigeria, in January 9, 2012.

At the resumed hearing of the trial, Fabunmi recounted that the AK-47 rifle was opened, while on his way to the scene of protest. He added that after Daramola died, he could not remember how many rounds of ammunition were left in the rifle until he was about being detained.

Fabunmi, while being cross-examined by Lagos State Director of Public Prosecution, DPP, Mrs. Olabisi Ogungbesan, explained that he didn’t go after the deceased nor shoot at people.

He said: “I did not run after the late Ademola Daramola, may his soul rest in peace. I do not know him. Why would I chase him? It is ridiculous. I never ran to anywhere neither did I fire any shot at anybody.”

The defendant also told Justice Olabisi Akinlade that on the day of the incidence, he received a distress call that hoodlums at Yaya Abatan Junction, Ogba Agege area, were breaking people’s windscreens and holding innocent people hostage.

According to him, when he got there with seven other police officers, the hoodlums attacked them by throwing bottles, sticks, cutlasses, stones and Molotov Curtails.

He was also asked if he was aware that some ammunition got out of his gun, Fabunmi responded, saying: “Yes. I knew that some ammunition got out of my gun when the hoodlums were trying to dispossess me of my rifle, after I sustained injury.”

“It took the grace of God for them not to have collected the rifle from me. The other police officers all ran away.”

Justice Akinlade adjourned the matter to 18 February 2015, for the adoption of written addresses.