Some suspected
ritual killers stormed the residence of a family of five children on Saka
Adegbose Street, off Olu Odo Road, Ikorodu, Lagos.
The assailants, who
struck on Christmas day, killed 2 siblings, Azeezat Oriade and Abeeb Oriade.
Two of the remaining
siblings – Abdulazeez and Jamiu – were said to be in a critical condition at
the Lagos University Teaching Hospital.
The four victims,
Punch reports, were sleeping in the living room while their mother and one
other daughter were in the bedroom when the assailants struck around 1am.
It was gathered that
the ritual killers had torn the net on one of the windows to gain access to the
apartment and hit the four children with some objects.
Shortly after they
left, Abdulazeez reportedly screamed, which woke up their mother and
neighbours.
The father, Lateef,
a commercial driver, was not around on the day.
21-year-old Azeezat,
the eldest child of the family, died immediately while her brother, Abeeb, a
Senior Secondary School 1 pupil, gave up the ghost at the Ikorodu General
Hospital.
The Oriades’
residence was deserted on Monday.
A former chairman of
the community development association in the area, Alhaji Wale Oladunjoye, said
the victims’ parents were traumatised and had been relocated by their relatives.
He said, “A few
minutes after 1am, somebody banged on my door, shouting that the Oriades have
been attacked. I called my brother and we went to the apartment. The incident
was reported at the Ipakodo Police Division.
“Initially, I
thought it was armed robbery, but I was baffled when I realised that nothing
was stolen in the building. Four children were brutally injured. Azeezat died
instantly. We rushed the three others to the Ikorodu General Hospital.
“After Abeeb died,
the two others were referred to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital,
Ikeja where they were rejected. We had to move them down to LUTH.
“Abdulazeez’s head
and jaw were broken and he lost several teeth. The family has been asked to
raise N500,000 for urgent surgeries on his head.”
Another resident,
who identified himself only as David, said the attack was the third in four
months in the neighbourhood, urging the government to take actions to stop the
bloodbath.
He said, “The attack
is becoming rampant and it is being perpetrated by a gang of ritual killers,
who have been terrorising Ibeshe, a neighbouring community. They don’t steal.
About four months ago, a family was attacked on Adegbose Estate. A man and his
three children were killed.
“Three weeks ago, a
woman was attacked at Power Line, a few kilometres from the estate. She was
able to scream and that was what saved her. The bush in the Oko Obasanjo area
needs to be cleared because it serves as an escape route for criminals.”
A landlord, Mr.
Adigun Mukaila, said residents had become overwhelmed by the attacks, and
called for intensified police patrols on streets across the community.
Lagos Police Command
said a manhunt had been launched for the fleeing suspects.
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