WHEN 26-year-old Anosikwa Patrick left his house with his girlfriend, Joy Ebere ,to relax at his usual spot in Skymall in Ajaharea of Lagos, little did he know that would be the last time at the environment ,as he was stabbed by the same police officer who ought to have protected him from harm.

Patrick, a realtor and the second child of a family of six , lived in cemetery, in the densely populated Ajegunle area of Lagos, with his parents until favour shone on him andhe relocated to Ajah, while his parents moved to Ago-palace in Okota area aid the state.

Unfortunately, the curtains fell on the life’s journey of the realtorafter he was stabbed in the thigh thighby a police man.

Explaining how life was snuffed out of him, his girlfriend, Beatricesaid perhaps he would have survived the injury, had the hospital he was rushed to attended to him.

According to her, “On April 20, 2024,my boyfriend and I went to Skymall about 10 p.m. to chill at the bar.

At midnight, my boyfriend excused himself to go to the entrance of the Skymall, possibly to meet someone and get something from him. While he was away, I remained at the bar waiting to leave with him immediately he came back.

“ Some minutes later, he was shouting for help .Some of his friends who were also there began calling for help.

“Upon hearing the commotion, I went outside and saw him in the pool of his blood. As I approached him, he fell. There was an armed policeman with a dagger stained with blood. As my boyfriend’s friends approached the policeman to enquire what happened, the only statement the policeman said was, ‘ why would he slap me? ‘.He cocked his gun, causing everyone to step back. Then ,he ran away.

“We rushed to attend to my boyfriend who was bleeding profusely. We took him first to DorenSpecialist Hospital, which was the closest ,but they rejected him, sayinghe wasn’t relaxing his body. Despite our pleas, they refused to administer any injections to help him relax.

“We took him to another hospital in Ajah, he was rejected too.We went to Emirates hospital, they also refused to treat himand directed us to the General Hospital Marina. On the way there , he stopped responding. He wasconfirmed dead on arrival”.

In tears, Ebere wondered why a policeman would act that way.

Continuing, she said, “ Another police that accompanied us to the hospital , said he was not there when the incident happened. He said he was alerted by some private security men. He left us when my boyfriend was confirmed dead.

Nobody knew exactly what happened. The Sky Mall Manager said the officers were not regular security personnel of Sky Mall but that they werebrought in to protect the environment.”

Also speaking withSaturday Vanguard, the immediate elder brother of the deceased, Augustine, said his family was yet to come to terms with the rude shock.

He said, “My grandmother is going through emotional pain with us. I have seen the Sky Mall Manager, who was detained when the incident happened, at the Ajah Police division. We’ve been hearing about police killing people they’re meant to protect, but my family never knew one day it would get to us. We seek nothing but justice”, he stated. When contacted, the Lagos State Police Command through its spokesman, SP Benjamin Hundeyin assured Lagosians that investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Patrick had commenced.

He disclosed that the policeman had been arrested and that he was under the custody of the command. (Saturday Vanguard: Text, Excluding Headline)