‘I saw my wife gasping for breath’ — husband recounts killing of Bolanle Raheem

Gbenga Raheem has narrated how his wife was shot dead by a police officer in Lagos state.

TheCable had reported that the shooting of Bolanle Raheem, a lawyer, took place on Sunday.

The deceased, a pregnant woman, was returning home with her family on Christmas Day when an officer attached to Ajiwe police station in Ajah, Lagos, shot and killed her.

The incident has sparked widespread criticism, and the Lagos police command has detained an assistant superintendent of police (ASP) and two other officers.

Also, Usman Baba, the inspector-general of police, has ordered a speedy investigation and prosecution of the officer involved in the incident.

‘MY WIFE WAS GASPING FOR BREATH’

When sympathisers visited the deceased’s home on Monday, Gbenga said the incident happened when he took his family Christmas shopping after church service.

PUNCH obtained a voice recording of the husband from one of the lawyers who visited the family.

“On December 25, my wife, nieces, nephews, and cousins, who had come for the holiday, all went to church,” the husband was quoted as saying.

“On our way back, my wife said since it was Christmas Day, we should take everyone out, so, we went to a supermarket at Abraham Adesanya, then to Domino’s Pizza.

“After that, we headed towards Ajah to do a U-turn to come back to Abraham Adesanya.

“When we took the U-turn, we saw policemen stopping some vehicles. As we approached them, they said we should stop, and in the process, we heard a loud sound on my wife’s side window. All of a sudden, I saw blood gushing out of her chest.

“I immediately ran out; my sister-in-law, who was also with us, ran out and held the policeman; he cocked his gun at her too.

“Talking to him was pointless, so I went to see if anything could be done; I saw my wife gasping for breath, and by that time, my sister-in-law had brought the policeman into the car and pushed him into the front seat.

“We drove to a hospital but they said they couldn’t handle it; we eventually took her to Grandville Hospital, where she was confirmed dead. The policemen took her body and put it in the truck; they wanted me to follow them but I said I needed to go and settle my children.”