Man cry out over police failure to pay N6.1 million damages

A father of five, David Ehiosun, who was shot on his left leg by a trigger happy mobile policeman in 2003, has cried out for help over the failure and continued delay of Police Authority to pay him the sum of N6.1 million as damages awarded by court.

Ehiosun said he was shot by one Inspector Sunday Omoseigho at Kingsway bus stop close to Mobolaji Bank Anthony way because he had refused to cooperate with the later to sexually harass a 15-year-old girl.

A medical report issued by a consultant with the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital(LASUTH), Dr. Mustafa I. A. made available to newsmen revealed that the victim who had since lost the use of his left leg, sustained open fracture of the left tibia and fibula from which he bled profusely.

In a bid to get justice, the 45-year-old driver, an indigene of Edo State, through the office of the Public Defender had in 2009 sued Inspector Omoseigho, the Commissioner of Police (CP) Lagos State and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) in Suit No: ID/574/2009.

After years of prolonged adjournments, Justice Bola Ighile of the High Court of Lagos State had on October 15th, 2014, awarded the claimant the sum of N6.1 million as damages.

Surprisingly, almost four years after the court judgement, Ehiosun is yet to be paid the damages.

According to him, life has not been the same since the incident, as he has spent all he had on both orthodox and traditional medicine treatment.

Ehiosun said the injury led to the loss of his job as a driver to a Banker, making him a liability to his family.

In his words, ” Due to the injury I sustained from the gun shot, I can’t stand for long and can’t even walk well. I have been going in and out of hospital admission due to complications from the injury.

” I have five children and I cannot even fend for them. feeding Daily and taking care of my bills is now a luxury I cannot afford. Some of my children have been forced to drop out of school. I just want the police to do the needful so that I can get my life together and give my children a better life. ”

On the attempts made to ensure compliance on the part of the Police, the victim said he had also written to the Lagos State Government to intervene in the matter.

He said, ” In 2017, I wrote to the office of the Lagos State Governor to come to my aid. The Governor ordered the Attorney General/ Honourable Commissioner ministry of Justice to act on my case. But till date, nothing has been done.”

Lamenting his ordeal, he said the police Inspector who was orderly room tried and demoted to a Sergeant has robbed him of his happiness and good health.

” Does it now mean that a uniform man can do whatever he pleases with the life of a common man and only get a slap on the wrist as punishment? Or is the police now above the law that even a court judgement mean nothing to them?” He said.

Narrating how it all happened, Ehiosun amidst tears said May 4th, 2003 was one day he wish he could erase from his memory.

” A day before the incident, the Inspector asked me to call him a teenage girl who he wanted to date and bed and I refused, telling him the parents of the girl in question know me as a pastor and I cannot betray such trust and respect.

” He threatened to deal with me and even shoot me, so I walked away. The next day, when I was walking pass, he was sitting and drinking with his police friend at Kingsway bustop. When he saw me, he stopped me and accused me of disobeying him. When I tried to explain myself he got angry and poured his drink on me.

” I asked him why he went that far and he said he would have shot me and while I was still trying to explain myself, he shot me on my left leg. Immediately he ran away, I was left in the pool of my own blood. People around quickly looked for a vehicle and rushed me to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital in Ikeja.”

Ehiosun reported the incident at Area F Police Command and the police Inspector was arrested. The matter was subsequently transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Panti Yaba.

” During interrogation, Omoseigho denied pulling the trigger at me. The police further arrested the other police men who were also at the scene of the incident. They all confessed to the fact that the suspect shot me.

” He went through the orderly room trial as stipulated by the police law and he was found guilty. He was demoted to a Sergeant. No form of compensation was given to me. Instead the then Commissioner of Police Lagos, CP Azeez advised me to take my case to the Police Headquarters in Abuja, ” he said.

At this point, the victim said the office of the Public Defender intervened in the matter and wrote to the then Inspector General of Police, IGP Mike Okiro, there was also no response.

” I travelled to Abuja to see the IGP and also to register my plight in person. After spending three weeks in Abuja, I was asked to take my case to the Commissioner of Police Legal. The CP Legal after hearing my case, referred me back to the CP Lagos.

” It was at this point that a good Samaritan who was touched by my plight, advised me to take my case to court rather than been tossed here and there. The matter was in court for years before I got judgement. The judgement stated that the Police pay me N6.1 million as damages, ” he maintained.

Ehiosun therefore called on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari to use his good office to intervene in the matter. He also begged the new police management under the leadership of IGP Ibrahim Idris to come to his aid and ensure compliance with the court judgement.