A woman has caused serious commotion inside a Lagos market after she stormed the place to make away with a trader's baby.
Men of the Nigeria Police Force
Many traders at a market in the Badagry Roundabout area of Lagos
State were unsettled recently when a two-month-old baby, Kudus
Adebowale, wa abducted by a customer.
According to Punch Metro, Kudu’s mother, Mrs. Alimat Adebowale,
sells biscuits in the market, while the suspected abductor was
identified simply as T-girl.
It was learnt that T-girl was well known to most of the traders in
the market and had lived in the community for over four years until a
few months ago when she travelled.
T-girl was said to have returned to the neighbourhood last week and
went to the market, where she was treated to a warm reception around
9am on Thursday.
It was gathered that she approached Alimat, who was breastfeeding
the baby, Kudus, and took the child under the guise of playing with him.
She reportedly strapped Kudus to her back afterwards and sat on a chair behind his mother, who was busy attending to customers.
“Nobody knew when she (T-girl) disappeared from the market with
the baby. The mother had looked back to check on Kudus, when she
discovered that she had left the market with her child. We called her
number, but she didn’t pick our calls. That was when it occurred to us
that she had stolen the baby.
“I don’t really blame Iya Kudus. She thought the child was in a
safe hand because almost everybody here knows T-girl. She would come to
buy things here and play with us. She is from Ibadan (Oyo State) and
had lived here for more than four years before she travelled some months
ago. She came back last week,” a woman, Kemi Agboola, who sells bread and drinks in the market, said.
A resident, Kayode Paul, told Punch Metro that the incident was reported at the Badagry Police Station.
He said the police arrested T-girl in Ibadan after some passengers
with whom she boarded a bus en route to the Oyo State capital raised
the alarm.
He said, “It was said the bus had a minor accident on the way
to Ibadan and the driver had to wait for some moments. As they were
waiting, Kudus started crying and the passengers urged her to breastfeed
him. She refused.
“As the baby’s cries increased, they compelled her to
breastfeed him and she reluctantly agreed. But the baby did not suck her
breasts, which made the passengers to be suspicious. After threatening
to beat her up, she said she was taking the baby to her mother in
Ibadan.”
Punch Metro reports that the passengers took her to the Yemetu
Police Station in Ibadan, and she eventually confessed to have stolen
the baby in Badagry.
“The police in Ibadan contacted the Badagry division and the
mother and her husband travelled there to recover their child. He is two
months old,” Paul added.
Alimat, who spoke with journalists on the telephone on Saturday,
said she had been reunited with her baby. She stated that she had
initially declined to give Kudus to T-girl.
She said, “People were playing with my baby that day when she
said I should also allow her to take him, but I refused. She asked if
she had offended me and pleaded that I should let her carry him. I
suddenly discovered that I didn’t see her again and people joined me to
search for her to no avail.
“My child was two months old that day. The woman used to come
here to buy drinks and play with us. I am now with my baby. We will
return to Lagos on Monday (today).”
The police in Ibadan said the suspect gave her real name as Yetunde Awosanya, and identified herself as Alimat’s friend.
“She said she travelled with the baby with the consent of his
mother. But after interrogation, it turned out that she was lying. The
case will be transferred to Lagos,” the police source said.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Command, SP Dolapo
Badmos, who confirmed the recovery of the child, said the suspect would
be transferred to the command for further investigations.
“Investigation is still on and the Commissioner of Police has
directed that the case be charged to court at the conclusion of
investigation,” she added.
A 20-year-old resident of Jakande Estate, Lekki, Phase 1, Lagos
State, Benjamin Archibong, has been arrested for allegedly beating an
official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority.
Archibong had reportedly obstructed the LASTMA official, Olumide Omomoyesan, while enforcing traffic rules in the Ajah area.
He was arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Task Force on
Environment and Special Offences (Enforcement) Unit and arraigned before
an Ikeja Magistrate’s Court sitting in Ogba.
Punch Metro reports that Omomoyesan and his colleagues had
impounded a commercial bus with number plate, FKJ 688 XV, whose driver
reportedly picked up passengers at an unauthorised place.
The suspect was said to have attacked the official, inflicting an injury in his nose.
The spokesperson for the task force, Taofiq Adebayo, who confirmed
the arrest on Sunday, said the suspect was charged with assault and
conduct likely to cause breach of the peace.
He said, “The suspect was arrested on January 31 and charged
with assault, obstruction and conduct likely to cause breach of the
peace before Magistrate Adepeju Odusanya of Court 15, Samuel Ilori
Magistrate’s Courts, Ogba, Lagos
“The prosecutor, Adedoyin Odukoya, disclosed that the suspect,
Benjamin Archibong, from Akwa Ibom State, pleaded not guilty and was
granted bail of N100,000 with two sureties in like sum. The matter was
adjourned till February 28, 2017, for further hearing.
“The Chairman of the task force, SP Olayinka Egbeyemi, said the
suspect was charged to court based on the directive of the Commissioner
of Police, Fatai Owoseni.”
Meanwhile, the task force has commenced the enforcement of the
directive of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to arrest any local government
and local council development area officials or touts who try to enforce
the Lagos State Road Traffic Law, 2012.
Ambode had stated that only the task force, the Rapid Response
Squad, the Nigeria Police and LASTMA would enforce traffic law in Lagos.
“Egbeyemi warned that any council official or tout caught
flouting the directive of the governor would be arrested and charge to
court.
“He also enjoined the public to immediately report any tout violating the order to the task force office in Bolade, Oshodi,” Adebayo added.
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