The man allegedly stabbed his eldest brother to death during a fight over his missing torch light. The incident which threw residents of 6, Adelaja street, off Afariogun Street, into panic, occurred at about 2a.m.
According to Vanguard, there had been a lingering quarrel between the siblings identified as Mayowa Adelaja (50) and Aderemi Adelaja who is in his 40s. However, yesterday’s situation took a violent dimension as it led to the death of Mayowa.
Trouble started at about 12midnight when the alleged killer, Aderemi, charged at his eldest brother, Mayowa, who lay at the veranda, accusing him of stealing his torch light. Apparently regarding the accusation as an insult from his younger brother, Mayowa reportedly drew the attention of their mother, who was sleeping, to the accusation. Entreaties by their mother to both aggrieved children to calm down, fell on deaf ears as they engaged in fisticuffs which woke other tenants from sleep.
Eye witnesses said Mayowa hit Aderemi with a rod twice and in retaliation, Aderemi rushed into the room , brought out a knife and allegedly stabbed his elder brother in the stomach. On noticing the magnitude of his action, Aderemi fled the scene, abandoning dying Mayowa in the pool of his blood.
Vanguard reports that when the scene of the incident was visited, at about 7am, Mayowa’s corpse was still on the ground. Tenants had fled their abodes for fear of possible arrest. Policemen from Akinpelu division later visited the scene to remove the corpse.
Their septuagenarian mother, a bread seller, was sighted at a corner of her one-room apartment with her chin on her palm with expression of shock on her face. She simply identified herself and also gave identities of her children but refused to speak further .
However, an eye witness, who simply gave his name as Mojeed, said “the quarrel between late Mayowa and his brother Aderemi started, when the latter with his five children, moved into their parents’ house, after losing his wife. Aderemi and his children were staying with their mother in her one room apartment. Mayowa was always angry that their mother was assisting Aderemi and his children instead of him (Aderemi) providing for their mother.
"On his part, Aderemi was not happy with his eldest brother’s life style. He sees him as a tout, accused him of stealing his things. We have settled several quarrels between them. Perhaps, if this fight had occurred in the day time, no death would have been recorded because people would have taken the weapons from them.”
Confirming the incident, spokesperson for the Lagos State Police Command, Dolapo Badmus said the alleged assailant was still on the run, adding that the case had been transferred to the Homicide section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department , SCIID