THE Lagos State judicial panel investigating activities of the defunct State Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) has awarded a total of N16. 25 million to a widow Tolulope Openiyi and three other victims of police brutality.
Chairperson of the panel Doris Okuwobi gave the ruling on Saturday.
Apart from the widow, the three other victims were Blessing Esanbor, Felicia Opara, and Tella Adesanya.
The panel awarded N10 million to Openiyi, and N 5 million to Esanbor. Opara received N750,000, while Adesanya got N500,000.
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Openiyi had approached the panel over the death of her husband Olusegun Openiyi whom she said was shot by one police sergeant Jide Akintola with the force number 32405.
The widow had told the panel that her husband, who worked for Airtel, was shot on his chest by officers of the Nigeria police while he was on his way from an official outing at the University of Lagos in August 2007.
Another victim Opara,who also got compensation, had told the panel that some police officers assaulted her with guns after she was arrested for making videos during the #EndSARS protest earlier in October 2020.
Felicia Opara, victim of police brutality receives compensation.
She was one of the ladies taken to the Ojuelegba Police Station during the #EndSARS demonstrations in October 2020.
Another petitioner Esanbor, who was also awarded compensation, had approached the panel to narrate how a police officer shot her on February 10, 2012, during an argument, alleging that she sustained injuries and had spent over N5 million in the hospital on treatment.
During her testimony as a witness before the Lagos panel, Adesanya said police officers seized his car while driving along LASU/Ibadan road in June 2018, after some persons had accused him of hitting someone along Igando Junction.
Adesanya alleged that he spent three days in a police cell, after which he paid N10,000 for bail and his car damaged at the station.
Adesanya added that he had written letters to the police, Office of the Public Defender, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the presidency seeking justice, but all to no avail.
The #ENDSARS panel was constituted across the 36 states and FCT to hear, investigate and make recommendations about petitions bordering on police high-handedness and other misconducts.
Lukman Abolade is an Investigative reporter with The ICIR. Reach out to him via [email protected], on twitter @AboladeLAA and FB @Correction94