Forensic evidence clears two Oyo Police officers in graduate shooting case

The Oyo State Police Command has denied allegations that two of its officers shot Nurudeen Azeez, a graduate of The Polytechnic, Ibadan, during a response to an armed robbery incident in Ibadan in 2021.

The command identified the officers as Inspector Gbenga Ayodele and Sergeant Ayilaran Boluwaji, both serving at the Agodi Divisional Police Headquarters.

According to the police, forensic investigations found no evidence linking the two officers to the shooting of Azeez.

This is contained in a statement issued on Saturday by the command’s spokesman, DSP Ayanlade Olayinka, restating the findings of an investigation concluded in 2021, following the recent resurfacing of the case in a viral video and newspaper publication.

The statement read, “The allegation was investigated and concluded by the Command in 2021. Following its recent resurfacing in a viral video and newspaper publication, the Command considers it necessary to restate the findings of the investigation.”

According to the statement, the incident occurred at about 9pm on August 16, 2021, when Ayodele and Boluwaji were on night-duty pin-down around Koltol Hotel, Ikolaba, Ibadan.

A motorist had approached them to report that he was being pursued by armed robbers, after which gunshots were heard from the direction of Bino Hotel, prompting the officers to head towards the scene.

The police said reinforcement was sent to the scene.

The statement read, “In the course of forensic sweep of the scene, a locally fabricated pistol was recovered.”

Eyewitnesses at the scene said a motorcycle passenger had been shot and rushed to Molly Specialist Hospital, Idi-Ape, by members of the public.

Azeez was later taken to Kehinde Ege Traditional Hospital, Asanke, Idi-Aro, Ibadan, where pellets were extracted from his body, and investigators could not obtain his statement at the time as he was undergoing intensive care.

The command said Azeez’s elder brother, Nurudeen Musa, told investigators he witnessed the extraction of the projectiles.

The police said, “Fifteen pellets were removed. Thirteen were documented, while six were registered as exhibits.”

The two officers’ duty and firearm records were obtained during the investigation.

The statement read, “The records confirmed that they had signed out two AK-47 rifles for their assignment that night.”

Both rifles were subjected to forensic examination.

The police said, “The forensic examination established that neither AK-47 rifle had been fired in connection with the incident. In addition, the pellets extracted from the victim were not consistent with AK-47 ammunition.”

The recovered locally made pistol was also examined.

The statement read, “Unlike the two police-issued rifles, the pistol showed characteristics consistent with recent discharge. However, this finding alone could not establish who fired the weapon.”

The police said, “Based on the totality of the evidence, the investigation concluded that the allegation that either of the two police officers shot Nurudeen Azeez was not substantiated.”

The statement added, “While the victim sustained a genuine gunshot injury, the evidence available did not establish the identity of the person responsible for the shooting.”

The case regained public attention after Very Nigerian published an interview earlier this month in which Azeez recounted how the shooting left him paralysed and appealed for support to regain the use of his legs.

He had maintained that a police officer shot him and ordered him to stand up before leaving the scene.

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