MY BROTHER AND HIS FRIENDS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR DPO's DEATH - SUSPECT

One of the prime suspects in the killing of Ikeokwu Nwogu, who was Agugu Divisional Police Officer, Sakiru Rafiu, alias Lapanpa, has said that his brother, Ramon, confessed to him that he and his friends killed the DPO during a protest after an alleged kidnapper’s den was uncovered in Adekile area of Agugu in Ibadan on April 1, 2015. Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Muhammad Katsina, said the slain officer died from machete and gun injuries, adding that his hand pistol was taken away by the hoodlums who descended on him. He also said that after investigation, the alleged claim that the property in question was a kidnappers’ hideout was false.

When he was paraded alongside 48 others in Ibadan this week, Lapanpa said that Ramon brought a gun home a day after the DPO was murdered and told him that the gun was indeed the murder weapon.

He said, “On the second day after the DPO was killed, my brother, Ramon, told people in my presence that they had killed the Agugu DPO. He also mentioned Anta, Olumoko, Tesi, Alausa (Aminu Idowu), Ijebu and Alayaki as his accomplices. Ramoni said Alausa used machete on him and that Tesi helped them wrestle the DPO to the ground before he was shot in the neck. The gun was hidden at the roof top of our house but it disappeared later. I am a popular figure in the area and that is why I was linked with the murder.”

Lapanpa added that when the police came after him and succeeded in arresting him, he cooperated with them and took them to where Ramoni had sought refuge, which also led to the arrest of other suspects connected with the murder.

Narrating his role in the killing, Alausa denied using machete on the late DPO while also blaming Lapanpa and his brother for aiding his (DPO) killing.

Alausa said, “Lapanpa is older than most of us but he is a liar. Ramon died in police custody so he cannot defend himself now. But before he died, he narrated how the DPO was killed and we all heard it. Ramon said when he got home on the day of the killing, Lapanpa showed him the gun used in killing the DPO before hiding it at the roof top. It later disappeared without a trace. I was there during the riot but I did not kill the policeman. When I heard gunshot, I left the place and by then, the DPO was still alive.”

Another suspect in the killing, Rilwan Okikiola said he met Lapanpa, Alausa and Rilwan Muili alias Soko at the scene of the murder while he was scavenging for used metals.

“I saw the body of the DPO at the scene. He was already dead. I walked away from the body and left the scene. I did not have a hand in his killing because I was not there when he was killed,” he said.