A petitioner, Anthony Olaoluwa Kusimo, who appeared before the Ogun Judicial Panel of Investigation set up to receive and investigate complaints of victims of police brutality, has narrated how he lost his right leg to amputation after being shot by a police officer identified simply as Moshood.
Kusimo, a 62- year- old man, while narrating his ordeal to the panel at Magistrate Court 1, Isabo, Abeokuta, said on February 9, 2012, two police officers accosted me around Iporo Ake area of Abeokuta in the afternoon and one of them shot me and they both ran away”.
According to the petitioner, “I was rushed to the General Hospital, Ijaiye, Abeokuta by neighbours. After I have received some treatment, I was asked to go for X-ray the second day, to my surprise, I got arrested at the hospital’s gate by some officers of the defunct Special Anti-robbery Squad (SARS) from Magbon, Abeokuta and was put behind bars for 37 days, tortured with a hot iron and asked to confess that I was an armed robber which I refused”.
Kusimo revealed that due to neglect and lack of proper care for the leg, it started decaying and later degenerated to the level of amputation in April 2012. He added that it was at the stage where the smell became unbearable that he was released to go back to the hospital.
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“At this point, we had no money again to purchase drugs and pay hospital bills. I had to sell my uncompleted building which was ready for roofing for just N500,000 to take care of the medical bills”, Kusimo said while requesting compensation for the money spent on his treatment and to take care of his family.
Another petition brought before the panel was that of Gbenga Kehinde, who was arrested on October 7, 2017, along with his three friends at Emuren, Ijebu Ode and were taking to Magbon in Abeokuta where they were accused of stealing fish worth N63million from a farm in Ijebu Ode.
According to the petitioner, he and his friends spent almost three months in police custody with severe daily torture from one Inspector Adam Abubakar for an offence they did not commit.
The cases had been adjourned to till January 28 and February 1, 2021 respective for further hearing and to get the accused police officers for their responses.
