Nigerians have taken to social media this morning to protest the untimely death of a young man identified as Kolade Johnson who was shot while seeing a live football match between Liverpool and Tottenham at approximately 4:30 p.m on Sunday, 31st March 2019.
Late Johnson was said to have died after he was hit by a stray bullet shot by a Police officer attached to police anti-cultism unit during a raid in Lagos.
Dennis Ikpoba, who has been friends with the deceased since their days at the University of Benin said the incident happened outside a Kingstine-Jo outlet in Mangoro, a transit neighbourhood near the international airport.
The stray bullet according to an eye witness hit late Johnson around the private part, and he died from the gunshot wounds at a nearby hospital shortly thereafter.
Reports say that the Police officers who fled after the shooting arrived the scene- a fast-food and relaxation bar in an unpainted bus. They wanted to apprehend a man identified as one Ismail Folorunsho whom they assumed was a criminal suspect because of his dreadlocks.
“They wanted to arrest Ismail who is known to everyone in the area and people quickly gathered to find out why. ”We later learnt that it was because he had dreadlocks that they wanted to arrest, fearing he might be a criminal,” Dennis Ikpoba friend of the deceased narrated to Premium Times.
But Mr Folorunsho was widely known in the neighbourhood as a staff member of Unlimited LA, a prominent Lagos cinematographer who had shot music videos for Sean Tizzle, Black Magic and other A-list artists, Mr Ikpoba said.
They came to arrest a guy that had dreadlocks and then shot sporadically after arresting the guy with the dreads. And hit this guy watching football pic.twitter.com/gHkve6PH3N
— Nwakibie (@Emenikechuka) March 31, 2019
A man named kolade Johnson was brutally shot dead by men of the anti cult unit of SARS at Mangoro bus stop Pentecostal filling station pic.twitter.com/NRpxC9L4UE
— Ayo Taylor FCA FCIB (@ayorinde_taylor) March 31, 2019
Mr Ikpoba said it was traumatic to see his best friend killed by a bullet emanating from people who were supposed to protect him from harm’s way, and over a matter that turned out “completely groundless.”
“Ismail Folorunsho has returned to the street, people have seen him around tonight,” Mr Ikpoba said. “That must have been because they did not find anything on him and they should not have harassed him at all because of his dreadlocks.”
The death of Johnson, 36, had led many on social media to again call for the disbandment of SARS (Special Anti-Robbery Squad) making #EndSARS and #EndPolicebrutality top trends of micro blogging social networking site Twitter.
See some tweets below:
Being young is NOT a crime. Having dreadlocks is NOT a crime.
Sagging your jeans is NOT a crime.
Having tattoos and piercings is NOT a crime.
The big crime is the police harassing and killing the innocent youth they are paid to protect, and nobody stopping them. #EndSARS— Dr. Joe Abah (@DrJoeAbah) April 1, 2019
Take a look at the picture below, it’s that of Kolade Johnson,he was brutally shot dead by men SARS in Lagos.
Such a young promising young man, killed for nothing.
It could be you tomorrow if you don’t add your voice to #ENDSARS.
It takes a sec to RT
— Tosin Olugbenga (@TosinOlugbenga) April 1, 2019
The killing of Kolade Johnson by evil men of SARS should unite us; every young Nigerian, every region should speak up now, let’s #EndSARS
— Somto Onuchukwu (@chosensomto) April 1, 2019
SARS is a police unit created to protect the people, instead it has become a danger to society, torturing its victims with complete impunity while fomenting a toxic climate of fear and corruption. #EndSARS @PoliceNG @MBuhari
— Amnesty Int. Nigeria (@AmnestyNigeria) April 1, 2019
Will the death of Kolade Johnson be the spring board through which the youths will finally raise their voice to demand social justice in Lagos & Nigeria?
Or will it be just another destiny cut short?
Rest in Power KayLow #Endsars #EndSARS #EndSACS #EndSAKS pic.twitter.com/2jemxNTgLD— Amòye Àgbà (@ojogbonagba) April 1, 2019
I AM KOLADE JOHNSON, YOU ARE KOLADE JOHNSON, WE ARE ALL KOLADE JOHNSON. #EndPolicebrutality in Nigeria.
— adeda (@tosinadeda) April 1, 2019
As at press time, the Nigerian Police is yet to issue any official statement on the death of Kolade Johnson. Michael Akindipe, the second-in-command of police anti-cultism squad in Lagos, however told Premium Times that urgent efforts to investigate and revert with a formal statement were been made.
