A search party has been dispatched by relatives of a National Diploma certificate holder, Lekan Odunare, who committed suicide on Tuesday morning in Epe area of Lagos.
Odunare, who cut the image of a depressed young man, was captured in a viral video plunging into the Lagos Lagoon in a desperate attempt to end his life.
As of the time of filing in this report, his body has not been recovered.
The deceased was a worker at Alaro City, one of the sprawling mega estates springing up along the Lekki-Epe Expressway.
Before he took the plunge, he was spotted sitting on the rails of a bridge in the video circulating on social media with the man filming the scene probing him about his intended action.
But Odunare who looked distressed, ignored him and jumped into the lagoon.
His action generated heat and got many people asking why the man behind the camera was contented with filming the disturbing video instead of rescuing him.
PUNCH reported that a source, who claimed to know the victim confirmed that his remains had yet to be found.
He said, “The boy is like a younger brother to me. I saw the news first on Facebook and I called his elder brother to ask if it was true and he said yes. When I asked if they had found the body, he said they had not found it but that the people that were around the area said he died after jumping into the lagoon.
“I can’t say why he jumped into the lagoon; probably he was depressed or something. He has finished his national diploma and was learning surveying; I don’t know why he would jump into the lagoon.”
When contacted, the deceased’s brother, Usman, also claimed that Odunare hardly opened up to anybody about his personal life.
He said, “I don’t even understand the situation. He just wished to do that to himself. He used to be depressed once in a while, but at least he should have come out and spoken to someone. If there was anything bothering him, he should have talked but that was how he chose to live his life. It has not been easy for our mother, but she will get over it as time goes on.
“We have not seen his body; we are searching for his body and hoping he will float to the shore because the lagoon is deep and nobody can enter into it.”
He also said the family did not report the matter to the police.
When he was reached on phone, State Police Public Relations Officer, Adekunle Ajisebutu, said that the matter has not been brought to his notice.
His position was also shared by the General Manager of the Lagos State Waterways Authority, Oluwadamilola Emmanuel, who also told PUNCH correspondent that the agency had no information on the matter.
