By Abubakar Akote
An elderly man, Alhaji Muftau Mohammed of Gbeganu Area of Minna, Niger State capital, slumped and died at Morris Police Division, where he had gone to bail two of his sons, Mubarak Ahmed and Yusuf Mohammed who were reportedly arrested by the police.
Mubarak and Yusuf told Daily Trust that they were picked by the police around 11pm on Wednesday where they were sleeping in a burglary in front of their house due to heat.
According to Yusuf, “We were lying down in a burglary in front of our house around 11:23pm when three police patrol vans passed us and went into Gbeganu Area. Few hours later, we saw them coming back and we stood up. Suddenly, the vehicle in the middle packed in front of us and they asked what we were doing outside. We told them that it was where we normally sleep because of heat. One of the officers forced the burglary opened and ordered his colleagues to put us in the vehicle and take us to the station.
“When we got to the station at Morris, they collected our phones and put us in the cell. At about 20 minutes later, I was in cell when I heard my father’s voice outside. Later I heard him screaming, asking for water and few seconds later, I didn’t hear anything again. It was at that point that I asked one of officers what was happening outside. But one of the officers told his colleague not to tell us anything. Later I didn’t hear our father’s voice again until when we were told that he was dead.”
Also speaking, Mr Dauda Jimo, the deceased neighbor who took him on his bike to police station that fateful night, said Alhaji Muftau Mohammed had high blood pressure and that each time he was woken up horribly, he usually develops severe headache.
“It was in my presence that his sons were picked by the police and Alhaji had already retired to bed. It was the noise from his daughters and neighborhood that woke him up horribly. So, when they told him that Mubarak and Yusuf were taken away by the police, he called me to bring my bike to take him to the police station. We got to police station at about 12:33am.
“”So, where we were seated, he told me he was having a severe headache and I should get him water to drink. We looked for water around the vicinity but we couldn’t get because all the shops around had closed for the day. It was in the process that he collapsed and one of the tricycles that was arrested was released to take us to the hospital and one policeman was asked to follow us.
“We went to Imani Clinic, we were told that doctor was not around. So, we headed for General Hospital. On our way, the fuel in Tricycle got finished. It was at that point that we saw one of the police vans with which Yusuf and Mubarak were arrested . So, they stopped and we told them what happened and they took us to Minna General Hospital. Getting to the hospital, we dropped Alhaji’s dead body and police left.”
Another neighbor, Alhaji Ahmad Abdullahi, who claimed to have witnessed all that transpired told our correspondent that the deceased’s wife who also followed them to police station fainted when the news of her husband’s death was broken to her.
“The wife wanted to trek kilometers to Morris Police Division that night but I obliged her to enter my car. Immediately we got to Morris Police Division, one of our neighbors who took Alhaji there rushed to me. Not knowing that his wife was sitting in the back seat, he broke the news to us and the wife jumped out of the car. As she was about running to enter the station, she fell down and fainted. It took some minutes before she was revived,” he narrated.
When contacted, the Niger Stat Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, the confirmed the incident.
He said police had commenced investigation into the matter to ascertain the fact, and to also look into the scenario if there was any act of negligence for necessary disciplinary action.
