If the Police officer (Okafor) is found guilty, he should be made to pay for evil deed.
This would serve as deterrent to some Nigerian Policemen, who indiscriminately shot at unarmed civilians.
A police officer, Sergeant Asakhamen Satto, on Monday testified against his colleague charged with manslaughter, before a Lagos High Court, in Ikeja.
Satto, at the hearing before Justice Olabisi Akinlade, said he was the leader of the Mobile Police team, including the accused person, Corporal Sunday Okafor, attached to Access Bank Plc, Idi-Araba branch in Lagos where the incident happened on October 21, 2009.
In his evidence, led by Mrs. M. Odutola, the witness said Okafor had 20 rounds of ammunitions in his rifle on resumption of duty on the fateful day but that his rifle only contained 18 after a gunshot which allegedly killed a victim was fired.
Sato said, "I posted the defendant to the entrance of the bank and another officer, Bello, to a side within the premises of the bank where the bullion van passes.
"At about 11:30am on October 21, 2009, as the leader, I used to visit the defendant and Bello at their positions and I was leaving Bello's position when I suddenly heard gunshot at the entrance of the bank. I immediately rushed to the entrance.
"On getting to the point, I saw a crowd rushing towards the bank with some of them shouting, 'mobile police has killed my brother'. Bello and I quickly rushed to the defendant and disarmed him."
Satto, who testified that he did not see the corpse because he could not wait to confront the hostile crowd also said the defendant was handling a K2 rifle on the day of the incident.
He said Okafor was taken away to an unknown place after the incident and that the intervention of the officers in his office in response to his call was what rescued him and Bello from the crowd.
The defence lawyer, Mr. A. O Omodele, when cross-examining the witness claimed that his client was beaten to coma by the crowd after the incident and that there was constant disturbance between the residents of the area and members of O'odua Peoples Congress from October 1 to 26, the day of the incident.
Justice Akinlade adjourned the matter to July 19 for continuation of trial.
The Punch