A 27-year-old man, identified as Tolu Falansa, was found dead in his apartment following a midnight fire incident in the Owode-Yewa community, located in the Yewa South Local Government Area of Ogun State.

PUNCH Metro learnt from a police source familiar with the incident on Saturday, who wished to remain anonymous due to a lack of authority to speak for the command, that the incident occurred at about 5:00 am on July 28, 2024.

Falansa, who reportedly kept his motorcycle inside the room where he slept, was found lying dead beside the machine in a room filled with smoke.

A resident, known only as Kafaya, told the police that they only discovered the incident when some people came looking for the deceased.

“We didn’t think something of that nature had happened until two boys came to look for Falansa. I pointed his apartment to them when they asked where he was,” Kafaya said.

It was learnt that Kafaya was in shock when the individuals returned to inform her that Falansa had died of smoke inhalation in his apartment.

The spokesperson for the Ogun State Police Command, Odutola Omolola, confirmed the incident to PUNCH Metro on Sunday and noted that the body had been taken to the Ilaro mortuary.

Odutola said, “The incident was reported to the Owode-Yewa Police Division at about 7 a.m. on July 28, 2024, by one of the neighbours. When our men went to the scene, the motorcycle he kept in his room had burnt while his lifeless body was lying inside the same.”

A similar incident was reported in January 2024 when a midnight fire killed seven members of a family – father, mother, and five children – in the Tudun Wada area of Nassarawa Local Government Area, Kano State.

A spark from an electrical plug, when power was restored in the area, was believed to have caused the death of seven family members while they were asleep. (Text, excluding headline: The PUNCH)

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