Since Monday, there has been unrest in Idoani, a community in Ondo state’s Ose Local Council Area, after a mob lynched a Naval Rating to death.
According to reports obtained by Naija News on Tuesday, the unidentified Naval officer was driving through the community when he accidentally splashed water on a motorcyclist and his passenger while attempting to avoid potholes on a bad section of road.
According to a source who confirmed the incident to the Daily Trust, the Naval officer came out of his vehicle after realising his mistake and apologised to the motorcyclist and his passenger.
He noted that the officer’s plea fell on deaf ears with the motorcyclist, who allegedly immediately mobilised community thugs to attack the officer.
According to him, a large group of thugs stormed the scene and attacked the officer.
“The man (naval officer) was unconscious and rushed to the community hospital after the attack, but he gave up the ghost before getting there and was confirmed dead on arrival by the doctor,” a resident told reporters.
According to Naija News, the incident has since caused tension in the community, with colleagues of the deceased officer allegedly threatening to avenge his death.
The youths in the community were said to have fled into the bush out of fear of retaliation. As of the time of publication, some of the deceased’s coworkers were said to be in the area looking for the killers of the Naval Rating.
It was also learned that the motorcyclist involved had been arrested and turned over to local police, while the main suspect, who had hit the deceased with a rod, had fled.
Funmilayo Odunlami-Omisanya, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in Ondo state, confirmed the incident to reporters over the phone and promised to provide more details later.
The latest attack on a naval rating in Ondo occurred only forty-eight hours after a naval rating was killed by unknown gunmen in Lagos State’s Ajegunle area.
Until the incident, the deceased naval officer was assigned to the Nigerian Navy’s Lagos Logistics Depot.
