Trouble looms as policemen, civil defence beat soldier in Benin

Trouble looms in Edo state, on Saturday, when a combined team of police and Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps operatives, allegedly beat up a soldier, for not wearing face mask.

This happened on Saturday afternoon, at Lagos street, Benin City, barely 24-hours after the state government shut down the street to all business activities over alleged refusal of traders and residents of the street to comply with the orders to participate in the ongoing screening and testing exercise for coronavirus, as part of efforts to contain the raging disease.

Onyxnews Nigeria gathered that trouble started when an unidentified military personnel not on uniform who was on the street was asked to put on his face mask.

According to an eyewitness who is also a source (prefer to be anonymous) said the soldier who was on military khaki short had an handkerchief on his neck and that his wife did not properly put on her face mask.

“On entering Lagos Street, the soldier and his wife were asked to wear their face mask by the policemen on duty. The soldier brought his ID card to identify himself but the police officer dismissed the ID card as not being original.

“The soldier got infuriated when one of the police officer pushed his wife with a gun in a bid to force her to wear the face mask.

“Following the argument that ensued, the policemen descended on the soldier and injured him on the head with the butt of their gun,” he said.

Traders and passers-by were forced to run in different directions, as men of the Nigerian Army who later stormed the area, allegedly shot repeatedly into the air to scare the police and NSCDC officers.

Quick intervention by officers of the Nigerian Army and the State police command, calmed the situation.

The feuding parties were later driven to the nearby Oba Market Police division to resolve the matter.

All efforts to reach the State Police Command’s spokesman, DSP Chidi Nwabuzor, through his mobile phone prove abortive.