17th May, 2010
A man called Asuquo Otu has stabbed his friend to death after both of them drank a local gin called “Sepeâ€.
The incident happened last night at Oloti village, a settlement, off Adeniyi Jones, Ikeja.
According to neighbours who spoke to P.M.NEWS, the deceased, Daniel and his friend Asuquo Otu commonly called Francis or Calabar were at Mama Ota’s joint where the incident happened.
They were both intoxicated when Daniel gave Francis N1,000 to pay a debt they owed someone.
As Francis returned, Daniel demanded his change of about N600 but Francis refused to give him.
This angered Daniel who tried to grab Francis to collect his change. The duo got into a battle of some sort, before Francis managed to throw Daniel to the ground.
However, Daniel ran towards a nearby factory and picked a bottle and as he arrived Mama Ota’s joint he broke it and threatened to stab Francis, but did not. Francis picked the other half of the bottle from the floor and slashed Daniel’s throat with it. Daniel began to bleed profusely as he collapsed.
Francis’ action caused pandemonium and chaos around the neighbourhood. The men and women of Oloti village screamed and cried as Daniel gradually passed away. Nobody took any real action to save him.
Attempts to rush him to a hospital were abortive as motorcycle riders around declined to help and getting a taxi took longer than expected.
The two men who hail from Cross River State have been friends for a long time and the neighbours who spoke to P.M.NEWS disclosed that Francis had sometimes relied on Daniel for his source of livelihood because he had no job.
Francis is currently in the custody of the police who arrived the scene almost two hours after the incident happened. He has been detained at Man Center Police Post in Ikeja, Lagos.
—Seun Bisuga