A police constable named Wale Akinlotan, who was assigned to the Lagos State Police Command, has died while on duty at Ilupeju police division.
The cause of his death is yet unknown, but it is reported that he was just recovering from injuries sustained from a bite by a suspect.
Akinlotan had assisted in apprehending the suspect who tried to escape from police custody, and in the process, the suspect had bitten him on various parts of his body.
The policeman had posted videos of his injuries on TikTok, describing human bites as worse than scorpion or snake venom. Akinlotan has been buried at a cemetery in Lagos State.
It was gathered that the policeman enrolled into the Nigeria Police Force in 2018 and has once served at the Lagos Police Public Relations Office, as one of its media men.
Akinlotan, who is a Graduate of Mass Communication from the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, slumped on Monday while at his station in Ilupeju, where he served as the orderly to the DPO.
However, when attempting to contact the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, he did not answer calls to his mobile.
In response to a text message, Hundeyin requested an SMS, but as of Tuesday, he had not responded.
Meanwhile, Akinlotan’s sudden death has sparked reactions from police officers, many of whom complained of poor welfare on the job.
Officers who spoke to the Newmen said Akinlotan’s death was one of scores of similar deaths that occur among police personnel of various ranks across the nation.
This, they blamed on the lack of rest among officers of the force.
“They won’t give us time to rest. Nobody cares about our health at work. Even when you’re sick, they will tell you to bring a medical report before asking you to go and treat yourself. You work many shifts a day. They won’t approve annual leave for us.
Tell me how officers won’t continue to drop dead. It’s sad we keep losing officers to avoidable circumstances”, some police officers said.
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