In a drug raid on Wednesday night in the Mushin neighbourhood of Idioro, Lagos State, agents of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) claimed the lives of two people.
Gafar Yusuf and one other person, whose identity has not yet been confirmed, are said to have been the victims of stray bullets fired by NDLEA agents who were sporadically firing in the area.
Around 10 o’clock at night, NDLEA agents stormed the neighbourhood to raid a drug den, but some residents involved in the trade resisted them.
The NDLEA agents then began firing in an effort to scatter the crowd, and while doing so, stray bullets struck the two victims.
This publication learned that although the victims were taken to a nearby hospital in a hurry, they were already dead when they got there.
Residents of the neighbourhood have expressed their outrage and anger over the incident and have accused the NDLEA agents of being careless.
According to The Punch, a local named Olasunkanmi questioned why the operatives would shoot randomly in a residential area.
“We’re not saying the NDLEA shouldn’t do their job, but why will its operatives be shooting in a residential area anyhow?” Olasunkanmi questioned. Around 10 o’clock at night, NDLEA agents entered a drug den in the neighbourhood and began taking drugs, which is acceptable.
The majority of the operatives, who numbered around 50, were armed. Others were dressed in casual clothing, while some were wearing the official uniform. The raid infuriated those involved in the drug trade, who then threatened to cause trouble.
But in order to get their way, the NDLEA agents began to fire, and stray bullets struck two young boys in the head and chest. They both passed away there and then. Gafar Yusuf is the name of one of the victims. The NDLEA agents killed them, but when they tried to remove their corpses, the locals resisted.
Another local, Lukmon, claimed that Yusuf’s mother, Olaide, who had been distraught since learning of her son’s passing, had told him about the incident.
We are sick of the NDLEA’s problem in our neighbourhood, he declared. Why would they shoot carelessly in a neighbourhood where people live? Instead of shooting carelessly to the point of killing two innocent people, it is expected that they would have a target in mind and a strategy for how they will apprehend the target.
“It’s not appropriate; they barged into the scene brandishing weapons and opening fire. The 22-year-old Gafar Yusuf died on Imoru Street. His funeral arrangements are already in the works. Although I can only confirm the deaths of two people at this time, we had heard that the raid claimed the lives of three other people.
Yusuf’s mother told me yesterday that her son had been hit by a bullet while he was running errands and was knocked out by the NDLEA agents’ bullets.
Videos from the scene showed locals sobbing as they surrounded the victims’ bodies.
The NDLEA has not yet commented on the change.
