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File photo: Motorcyclists also known as Okada riders
A 37-year-old Uber Driver, Gbolahan Fagbenja, is currently receiving medical treatment after being brutally attacked by a mob of motorcycle riders in the Abesan area of Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the victim was attacked on Saturday, August 17, after being mistaken for a police informant.
The attack came after officials of the Lagos State Task Force had raided motorcycle parks in the area and seized some of the motorcycles in the process.
Gbolahan, who spoke from his hospital bed, on Sunday, explained that he was passing by, from his brother’s house, when the angry motorcycle riders accused him of being a police informant and pounced on him.
He said, “I visited the Abesan Estate with a friend to check out a car I was interested in using for an Uber business. After inspecting the vehicle, I stopped by my brother’s place in the area and spent some time with him until evening. Around 7 pm, I decided to leave and head home. As I approached the gate, I noticed a commotion and saw task force officials loading motorcycles into their van. I walked past them to buy some items from a nearby trader.
“Just as I finished my purchase and walked a short distance away, a young man approached me, pointed at me, and accused me of being one of ‘them.’ Initially, I ignored him, but he asked if I wasn’t with the police. He then claimed I was the one who had dragged him when the police were around earlier. Before I could respond, his friends surrounded me and attacked me.”
Gbolahan said efforts to prove his innocence proved abortive as they continued to attack him on the spot.
He claimed to have struggled by running into a building to seek cover, but the aggrieved riders caught up with him and continued to beat him.
He added that different dangerous weapons were also used to attack him before some Good Samaritans intervened and rescued him from them.
“They attacked me with iron rods, sticks, bottles, stones, and other dangerous weapons, hitting me all over my body. I could barely see as my eyes were also affected. Just as I thought all was lost, I recognised a woman passing by and called out to her for help. She saw my condition and quickly rushed to alert other neighbours, who came to my rescue and saved me from my attackers. Afterwards, I was taken to the nearest police station to report the incident.”
Gbolahan however lamented that some of the police officers on duty at the station almost prevented him from accessing the premises due to his outward appearance.
He was later allowed in before his brothers came around and took him to the hospital.
He further stated that efforts to get the perpetrators apprehended had been unsuccessful, alleging that different reports made at the police station were not acted upon.
