Navy Apprehends Three Officers and Woman Accused of Be@ting Civilian To De@th

Three commissioned officers and one civilian have been arrested by the Nigerian Navy (NN) for their alleged involvement in the attack of 33-year-old microbiologist Iheanyi Onumegbu at the NN Reference Hospital (NNRH) in Ojo, Lagos.

Onumegbu, a civilian employee of the Ministry of Defense stationed at the naval hospital, was allegedly subjected to physical abuse by four naval personnel at the behest of an unidentified civilian woman. She was alleged to have bullied him persistently every time he went to check on the dog he was watching over for an officer assigned outside of Lagos.

The deceased, who would have been 34 on May 22, was adored by his supervisors and coworkers for his obedient work and was recognized as the NNRH’s finest junior civilian staff member in 2019.

Speaking over the phone with The Nation, one of his siblings said that her brother had told them he had been beaten between Tuesday, March 26 at 8 p.m. and Wednesday, March 27 at around 1 a.m.

She stated that after he failed to come home from work on Tuesday, the family started to worry. They continued to contact his phone, but he did not answer.

“We live in an estate within Satellite Town and not far from the barracks. So, you can understand how worried we were when he didn’t come home on Tuesday and that’s very unlike him. We kept calling but no response.

“By the time he was home on Wednesday, I had gone to work. It was when I came back from work that I saw my brother and all the injuries on him. My brother isn’t the type to cry but he was crying and in pain.

“He said they beat him up from 8 pm on Tuesday to about 1 am on Wednesday. He said four of the officers stripped him of his clothes and beat him that he was forming a tough guy and not crying.

“He said they made him kneel and put his face to the ground while beating him. That it was four of them that assaulted him despite showing them his ID card and that they made video recordings of it.

“He said those who did it were neighbours with the civilian woman. My brother likes dogs and takes care of them as a side hustle.

“What usually takes him to this particular residence where he was beaten is the dog one officer gave him to look after since the officer was on posting outside Lagos. He said each time he went there, that woman would harass and bully him and that she called him Dog Boy.

“That day, he decided to stand up for himself against the constant bully and the lady went to instigate those officers who didn’t even hear his side of the story and started beating him. He said he showed them his ID card but they said it was fake and that it was the fifth officer who didn’t assault him who rechecked the ID and told them it was not possible to be fake.

“He said after the whole incident, they forced him to wear his clothes back and that when he got to the hospital, he reported at the investigation desk and also told his boss, the Commander of the hospital who asked him to go and officially report at NNS WEY which he did.

“He said after his report, a Hilux was assigned to him with personnel to go to the residence and that all the suspects were taken to the station and their phones collected. The Navy saw the videos they made of the incident and the Navy has it.

“My brother said the culprits also wrote statements at NNS WEY and that he went back to his workplace which is the hospital where he started getting treatment.

“I don’t know if an X-ray was conducted. But I know he mentioned getting one. The Nigerian Navy has all the information on this matter.

“We reported to the police after he died. We had to file an official complaint because we want justice for my brother,” said the sibling.

Despite his apparent condition, he was said to have gone to work every day until his body was discovered dead at his workplace on March 31.

The Nation was informed that, because the deceased was a civilian, naval authorities from the barracks rushed to the Agboju Police Station to record a case of unexpected death. After his death, his relatives reportedly registered with the police as well.

It was discovered from the complaints that the police had written to the navy, asking that the suspects be turned over for further investigation. This request had not yet been fulfilled.

“As I speak with you, no suspect has been handed over to the police. An official letter of request has been sent to the NN but there has been no compliance yet. The deceased’s body was moved to LUTH for autopsy. He reported to the Naval Police in the barracks the day he was assaulted and identified those responsible.

“He also told his family about it,” said a source who refused to be named. [CONTINUE READING HERE]