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NDLEA shoot two dead during raid in Lagos. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency allegedly killed two people, including Gafar Yusuf, in Mushin, Lagos State, in the Idioro area.
According to the PUNCH, NDLEA operatives attacked the village about 10 p.m. on Wednesday to raid a drug den when they began shooting sporadically in an attempt to achieve their goal.
While engaging in the act, it was learnt that stray bullets from the operatives, shooting sporadically to scare hoodlums attempting to scuttle their plan in the community, killed the victims.
A resident, who gave his name simply as Olasunkanmi, while lamenting over the development, questioned the operatives for shooting sporadically in a residential area, adding that the bullets hit Yusuf’s head and the yet-to-be-identified victim’s chest.
He stated that the victims died on the spot and that the community was outraged by the incident.
“We are not saying the NDLEA should not do their job,” Olasunkanmi said, “but why will its operatives be shooting in a residential area anyway?” The NDLEA operatives invaded a drug den in the community around 10pm and started seizing illicit drugs which is OK.
“The operatives were about 50 in number and most of them were armed. While some wore the official uniform, others were dressed in casual wear. The people dealing in the drug business were enraged by the raid and started threatening to make trouble.
“But the NDLEA operatives started shooting to have their way and stray bullets hit two young boys in the head and chest. Both of them died on the spot. The name of one of the victims is Gafar Yusuf. After killing them, the NDLEA operatives attempted to take their corpses away but people in the area resisted.”
Another local, who went by the name Lukmon, said Yusuf’s mother, Olaide, who had been inconsolable since the horrific events that took her son’s life, told him about the incident.
“We are tired of the NDLEA’s issue in our neighborhood,” he remarked. Why will they be shooting indiscriminately in a residential area? If they want to work, it is expected that they would have a target and they should have a plan for how they will arrest the target instead of shooting carelessly to the point of killing two innocent persons.
“It was uncalled for; they stormed the area with guns and began shooting.” On Imoru Street, Gafar Yusuf, 22, was killed. We’re already making plans to bury his body. We heard three people were killed during the raid, but I can only confirm the deaths of two people for the time being.
“Yusuf’s mother called me yesterday that a bullet had hit him and that he was running errands when he got struck down by the bullets fired by the NDLEA operatives.”
Video clips in possession of our correspondent showed people running helter-skelter during the raid that created tension in the community.
In one of the video clips, our correspondent observed residents in the area shedding tears as they surrounded the corpses of the victims that lay motionless on the road.
As onlookers shouted their outrage over the tragedy, blood streaks spilling from the corpses were seen on the asphalt.
When contacted, NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi did not answer his phone calls and had not to respond to a text message sent to his mobile number at the time this report was produced.