by two dogs.
And according to Punch, the dogs had chewed the
skin and exposed the victim's skull during the attack
which happened on Thursday on Adegboyega
Street, Akesan Estate, in the Igando area of Lagos.
PUNCH Metro had reported last week that the
police arrested the two dogs for attacking
Omonigho.
However, their correspondent learnt from
eyewitnesses that the dogs dragged him through the
compound for more than one hour while policemen
and sympathisers watched helplessly at the
entrance of the house for fear of being attacked by
the savage dogs.
The immediate elder brother of the victim, seven-
year-old Osemudiamen, told Punch correspondent
that the dogs had chased him, Omonigho and their
elder brother, Bobby, while they were taking turns
to ride a bicycle.
He said:
"We were riding a bicycle in the compound
when the big dogs ─ Jack and Gadaffi ─
started barking at us. Later, they moved
towards us. My elder brother and I quickly ran
upstairs and locked the door while Omo
(Omonigho), who could not run fast, was left
behind. When he got to the door, he knocked
that we should open for him and as we did,
one of the dogs forced his way into the house
with him. We all ran out. Bobby jumped down
from upstairs and I also jumped. But Omo
could not jump, so the dog attacked him. The
other dog also joined in the attack and there
was nothing we could do."
It was learnt that the screams of the children who
managed to get outside attracted passersby and
residents who besieged the house. No fewer than
seven policemen from the Igando Police Station
reportedly stood at the gate, confused.
An eyewitness, who lived on the street, but pleaded
anonymity, said:
"The police came, but said there was nothing
they could do. The dogs were growling as they
ate the child alive and that sent fear into
everyone. Nobody could move inside to
challenge the dogs. Everybody was just
shouting in confusion and wielding sticks."
The victim's mother, Mrs. Helen Abraham, who
was away when the incident happened, said her son
had been injured by the time she arrived at the
scene.
She said:
"When I got there, I met a crowd. They asked
me not to go inside, but I refused to listen to
them. One of the dogs emerged from the
corridor with blood stains in its mouth. I ran
inside. The other dog, on sighting me,
pounced, but I fought back. It later ran away. I
called on people who joined me to take him to
a hospital. This has been a nightmare I want
to wake up from."
The victim's father, Mr. Odia Abraham, said the
medical personnel at the Igando General Hospital
asked them to transfer him to LASUTH because of
the severity of the attack.
"The doctor at Igando said his condition was
critical and we should take him to LASUTH.
When the incident happened, I was away at
work. But when I got home, I saw parts of my
son's scalp on the floor. The dogs dragged him
through the compound for about one and half
hours and nobody moved near them. His face
was also affected, but thankfully it did not get
to his eyes.
His two brothers, who survived, also got
injured. The seven-year-old who spoke with
you has a fracture, which we are still treating.
The other, who is 13 years, has a minor
injury.
We marked Omo's fourth year birthday in
June. He is a very intelligent boy and he
always tells me he wants to be a soldier
because he loves to protect people. I am hoping
this thing will not affect his brain," he said.
The police were said to have arrested the owner of
the dogs, one Stanley Wesley.A resident said the
people living in the house had warned Wesley about
his dogs but he refused to listen.
She said:
"We became alarmed when he brought a third
dog recently which was more ferocious and
bigger than the others. Whenever he took that
dog on a walk, even adults would be scared.
People told him to find a place to keep his
giant dogs, but he refused to listen. It was the
new dog that first followed those children into
the house."
When Punch visited the Burns and Plastic Ward of
LASUTH, he was told the victim was asleep.
The matron in charge of the ward told our
correspondent she would not comment unless the
Public Relations Officer of the hospital gave an
approval. However, the PRO was said to be
unavailable as he was on leave. A medical officer,
who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the
victim's condition was "serious and critical."
The Police spokesperson, Lagos State Command,
DSP Kenneth Nwosu, said the police were the ones
that actually rescued the victim.
Nwosu said:
"I can confirm to you that on September 25, at
about 5.40pm, dogs belonging to one Stanley
Wesley attacked and harmed a four-year-old
boy and the matter was reported at the Igando
Police Division. The report from the Divisional
Police Officer indicated that the dogs were
being kept to undergo some tests, while their
owner had been arrested. The report that the
police did not do anything is not true."
SOMAYINA OFFOR
