By Ahmed Ajikobi
A commercial motorcyclist popularly known as Okada rider, Hussein Ibrahim was on Wednesday killed by unknown persons in Ilorin, Kwara State.
It was gathered that the motorcyclist was killed with a sledge hammer by his assailants in the Tanke area of the metropolis.
According to an eyewitness, who simply identified himself as Lanre, the passenger had colluded with another person to carry out the dastardly act.
” Immediately he was hit on the back of his head by the hammer, he fell to the ground and his assailants got on the bike and zoomed off.
“The motorcyclist was rushed to a hospital in the area by good Samaritans, but was declared dead on arrival by the doctor on duty.
“Passers-by gave the robbers a hot chase and one of them was caught while the other escaped with the motorcycle along Basin road,” he explained.
He said the robber was almost lynched by an angry mob but was saved by a team of policemen on patrol in the area and whisked away.
The remains of the motorcyclist an indigene of Bacita was said to have since been buried according to Islamic rites.
Reacting to incident, the President of the Kwara State Commercial Motorcyclists Association, Alhaji Fatai Oladimeji condemned the robbery attack, saying that it is a reflection of what is happening in recent time in the state.
He decried the spate of killings of members in the state by robbers in the process of robbing them of their moyorcycles.
“These men of the underworld have several ways in which they attack unsuspecting motorcyclists during their operations.”
He lamented that most of his members who fell victim of the robbers got their motorcycle through hire purchase and were yet to complete payment.
“Most of them are bread winners who have dependents but they were murdered in cold blood by robbers who make away with the motorcycle. This is very pathetic.”
He then called on security agencies in the state to help save the situation, saying, ” we seek urgent intervention of the police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and other agencies towards curbing this menace.”
Speaking on the development, the state Police Spokesperson DSP Ajayi Okasanmi said he was unaware of the murder of the motorcyclist.
He said, ” I learnt of a report that they wanted to lynch someone at Basin area and police were called to rescue the situation. That’s what we heard; they have not reported any such murder case to the police command.”
