Lagos Neighbourhood agency probes officer over stabbing allegation

Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Agency (LNSA) has set up an eight-man investigation panel to probe one of its officials, Olawale Okoya, for allegedly stabbing a 27-year-old party guest, Adelakun Quam.

The incident occurred at a party on Lagos Island.

LNSA, in a statement said the panel, set up on Wednesday was to ensure a thorough investigation of what happened during the party, held in the Bamgbose axis of Lagos Island and make appropriate recommendations to the agency.

The panel will decide if Okoya truly stabbed the victim, who was said to be on admission at the Lagos Island Hospital, close to his eye’s socket.

Okoya had claimed that his baton mistakenly hit Quam while trying to defend himself.

Quam was a guest at the party and the Neighbourhood official was rendering his services to the party organisers along with a colleague.

But, LNSA, in its statement distanced itself from the action, stressing that the agency’s standard operating procedures for deployment of its officers for any assignment was not followed in Okoya’s case

According to the statement, the standard practice is for citizens requiring the services of the agency to communicate their desire in writing to its headquarters from where approval is communicated formally to the Command responsible for such deployment.

“This was not followed and subject to the above, the agency is termed to be unaware of the deployment and subsequently could not account for the actions or inactions of the officer in question.

“That there is a need to ascertain the real facts of the incident with a view to dealing with the matter appropriately.

“The incident is unpalatable and the agency expresses its deepest unhappiness at it, while it wishes to implore the general public to kindly remain calm pending the completion of the investigation in order to ensure justice is served,” it said.