Chaos erupted on Creek Road, Apapa, Lagos State, on Wednesday after a police sergeant, Dare Adamu, attached to a branch of Diamond Bank on the road shot a driver dead.
The death of the driver, who was a member of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), led to a violent protest during which the bank and a Sterling Bank branch were set ablaze by a mob.
The riot forced the banks to shut down.
There are two accounts of events that led to the incident.
A commercial bus driver, identified simply as Idris, said the driver was in a traffic leading to the Apapa Port around 8am, when the trigger-happy cop approached him for a N1,000 bribe. He was said to have gone berserk as the driver turned down the demand.
“When the driver said he didn’t have N1,000, he cocked his gun and shot him in the head. The driver died on the spot,” Idris said.
However, a trader, Emmanuel Nnamdi, told our correspondent that the driver was in a queue of trucks heading for the port, adding that the victim was held in the gridlock in front of Diamond Bank.
Nnamdi said the cop complained that the truck was blocking the bank and asked the driver to move.
He said. “The driver told the policeman that there was no space for him to move forward or reverse because of the gridlock. He was not comfortable with the driver’s excuse and an argument ensued. Suddenly, the police man cocked his gun and shot the driver directly in the head.
“Immediately he saw the driver in a pool of blood, he fled into the banking hall of Sterling Bank, which is beside Diamond Bank.”
Another eyewitness, Desmond Peters, said policemen prevented the angry drivers that chased Adamu from gaining access into the banking hall.
“At that point, the drivers became furious and started vandalising the two banks. They eventually set fire to the banks,” he added.
According to Punch, it took the intervention of soldiers and policemen to stop the mob action while firefighters put out the flames.
The Lagos State police spokesperson, ASP Olarinde Famous-Cole, said the killer cop had been detained.
He said, “The incident has nothing to do with bribe. There was a misunderstanding between the policeman and the driver. It was in the process that the incident happened. The victim was taken to a hospital, where he gave up the ghost.
“We are investigating and arresting suspects that were involved. The policeman is in our custody and he is going to face sanctions. He was on guard duty at the Diamond Bank.”
The Director of Operation, AMATO, Dr Chike Aneke, said the incident was part of the oppression drivers went through in the hands of policemen in the area.
He said, “Because of the traffic situation in Apapa, policemen attached to banks usually extort money from our drivers while in queue. Today (Wednesday), there were a lot of trucks trying to access the port. As a result, the driver’s truck was in front of the new generation bank.
“One of the policemen that usually extort money from them asked the driver to move. He fired at the driver. Stray bullets also hit two others. Other drivers got angry and thereafter set the bank ablaze.”
Meanwhile, the two banks, in separate statements on Wednesday said they had suspended operations as a result of the havoc wreaked on their facilities.
The Sterling Bank Chief Marketing Officer, Brand Management and Communications Group, Henry Bassey, said the branch’s reception area was vandalised and set ablaze.
