Pupil's leg amputated after Police gunshot

Narrating the incident to our correspondent, the victim’s father, Chief Nta Asuquo, said his son, an SS II pupil of Government Science School, Henshaw Town, Calabar South, was shot by one of the members of a team of anti-robbery policemen from Efut Division, who stormed his compound to arrest his daughter.

He said, “My son’s ordeal started at about 2 pm on that fateful day when a team of anti-robbery policemen from Efut Division stormed my residence at 90, Edibe-Edibe Road, Calabar South, in a commando style to arrest one of my daughters, Miss Martha Asuquo, on a trumped up allegation of threatening the live of one of the neighbours.

“On arriving at the compound with a police pick-up van, the fierce-looking officers requested to arrest my daughter for allegedly assaulting one of the neighbours, a lady. I obliged.

“I was made to understand that my daughter had a misunderstanding with the lady, who decided to use her contacts with the police to arrest my daughter.

“When they came my daughter, Martha, was just coming out from the bathroom and the policemen insisted that she should follow them to the station. She pleaded with them to let her dress properly since she had just emerged from the bathroom.”

“My son kept pleading with the policemen to allow his sister to dress up properly since she was just coming out from the bathroom. He (my son) told the policemen that it was not wise to drag her into the van with only wrapper around her waist and perhaps they felt provoked by my son’s insistence and  one of them Asuquo Ekpo with Force No 169385 opened fire on his leg.”

In the petition written on behalf of Asuquo and addressed to the state Commissioner for Police, Mr. Osita Ezechukwu, dated April 30, 2012 and titled, A case of Malicious Shooting of Master Asuquo Nta Asuquo,” his Lawyer said it was unfortunate that the Nigeria Police had not learnt any lesson, not even with the rebranding campaign of the acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar.

In his reaction to the matter, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Hogan Bassey, said, “We are aware of the incident. The victim was said to have resisted arrest. For now, the police are looking into the matter and very soon will make its findings public.”

-Punch