A policeman at Iyaganku Police Station in Ibadan, Oyo State, shot an unidentified young man dead on Sunday night at Palms Shopping Mall in the Oluyole area, FIJ can report.

An eyewitness told FIJ that the policeman fired the shot while the youth was trying to evade arrest.

“The guy was smoking when the police officer moved to him and started dragging him to the place where their vehicle was parked nearby,” the source said.

“He was accused of smoking weed. The guy was also struggling with him but by the time he managed to escape by trying to jump over the fence, he was gunned down.”

The eyewitness added that the policemen were fond of parading that area of Ibadan with the intention to extort young Nigerians that ply that axis.

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While expressing his grief, he said: “My heart broke when I saw him lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood.

“This is how the Police regularly parade that area for young people to extort and are often eager to shoot at every opportunity.” 

When contacted for comments on Monday, Adewale Osifeso, the spokesman for Oyo State Police Command, failed to respond to the death of the young man but insisted that “it was a case of cult-related violence”.

“Comprehensive investigations are ongoing to apprehend all the culprits involved and updates would be provided in due course,” he said.