Gunmen have killed an Akure based industrialist and philanthropist, Chief Joshua Fagbola popularly called “Titilayo”.
Fagbola, 73, died following injuries he sustained during the attack by some unidentified gunmen who struck at his residence last weekend.
Also in Port Harcourt yesterday, unknown gun-wielding criminals killed a driver and police orderly attached to the wife of a chief executive of an oil company, DMS, who was shot and wounded before kidnapping his 11 year-old son, Master Chidi Nzerem.
The late Akure industrialist who was the owner of a popular sachet water factory in Akure known as “DPC” had been in coma until he died on Friday as the gunmen were said to have hit him with a heavy object before inflicting a deep cut on his head.
Apart from the industrialist, it was gathered that at the deceased’s Federal University of Technology, Akure Road residence, one of his relatives known as Wale also died after the attack.
Another relative of the deceased, Kayode Fagbola, 48, told journalists that gunmen numbering about seven stormed the residence last Monday morning.
In Port Harcourt, trouble allegedly started for the Nzerem family when the mother of the kidnapped child went to drop him in his school at the highbrow Brookstone International School, Igwuruta in Ikwerre Local Government Area of the State when they were accosted. Their attackers were said to have feared resistance from the orderly and immediately opened fire, killing him and the driver. Some of the bullets fired at the car with automatic weapons were said to have hit Mrs. Nzerem who was seriously wounded but is recuperating at an undisclosed hospital.
The father of the kidnap victim, Nzerem whose office is located at the Free Trade Zone in Onne, Rivers State could not be reached as he did not pick his calls when THISDAY called him on phone repeatedly.
According to Fagbola’s relative in Akure, the gunmen scaled the fence and entered the house through the back door adding that some ladies who were on duty at the sachet water factory, in the same compound, were raped by the suspected assassins in an operation that lasted from 1-5am.
Speaking on the Akure murder, Kayode said that although the gunmen collected some unspecified amount of money the incident was far from being a robbery case.
According to him, � Keys to cars parked in the residence were brought to them but they didn�t drive any of the cars away. But Baba was not a politician! He was a philanthropist who was busy helping the poor and the needy.�
The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Adeniran Aremu, told our correspondent on the telephone that the incident had been reported to the police.
He said that the case was still under investigation but no arrest has been made Confirming the Port Harcourt incident, Spokesman of the joint Military Task Force in the State, Lt. Col. Sagir Musa said it seem that the family were trailed to the point they were attacked, adding however that the wounded
wife of the oil executive was responding to treatment. Also confirming the incident, Police Public Relations Officer, DSP, Ireju Barasua said they have already spread their dragnet with a view to uncovering where the hoodlums were keeping the kidnap victims.
Apr82008