A widow in Niger State, Aisha Hassan, has accused operatives of the state police command of killing her 27-year-old son, Sani Khalid, in cold blood.
The incident reportedly happened in the Angwa-Kaje area of Maitumbi, Minna, in the early hours of March 10, when Khalid stepped outside their home to get fresh air due to the hot weather.
According to the PUNCH, narrating her ordeal, Aisha said she and her children were asleep when she heard the sound of a police patrol vehicle, followed by gunshots. She instinctively told her children that someone had been shot.
“I ran outside to look for Khalid and found him lying on a bench at a tea seller’s shop. I shook him, but he was lifeless. I tried again, and he rolled down to the floor. I began to scream that the police had shot my son,” she said.
She explained that neighbours, who were preparing for their fasting, rushed to the scene and helped take Khalid to the hospital, where doctors confirmed him dead.
The grieving mother lamented that her son, a footballer and small-time trader, was the family’s breadwinner after her husband’s death. She demanded justice for him.
Eyewitnesses in the area alleged that the police officer who fired the shot was drunk and also attempted to shoot the tea seller, who narrowly escaped.
One of the neighbours, Ibrahim, said, “The policeman was drunk when he came down from the patrol van. He shot Khalid in the stomach while he was on the bench. He also tried to shoot the tea seller, but he escaped. We were preparing for our fasting, and there was no disturbance when we suddenly heard the patrol van.”
When reporters visited Aisha at her home, she was surrounded by dozens of mourning women who came to console her.
Meanwhile, the Niger State Police Command has confirmed Khalid’s killing but described it as the result of a stray bullet.
Spokesman Wasiu Abiodun said a police patrol team had been deployed to the area following a distress call about youths causing unrest.
“In a bid to disperse the boys, one of the patrol team members fired gunshots, and stray bullets allegedly hit Sani Khalid in the stomach,” he said.
Abiodun added that the divisional police officer in Maitumbi had been directed to investigate the incident and identify the officer responsible for further action. He, however, did not address allegations that the officer was intoxicated.
“The command will provide further updates on the investigation,” he stated.
