The wife of a Kaduna-based hip-hop musician has alleged that her husband, Stanley Ukpabio (with the stage name Desty Randy), was shot on the stomach by a policeman in Kaduna when he was mistaken for another man with criminal case who was said to be on the run.
But on the contrary, when contacted, the Police Public Relation Officer (PPRO), Aminu Lawan said, “No body shot at him; police did not shoot at him. There was information of criminal activities around Mando where he stays and he was a suspect.
“When he was to be interrogated, he invited his colleagues who almost over powered the police. He (Randy) resisted arrest; it was then that he sustained the injury.
The police did not shot at him as claimed,” the police spokesperson said.
“Our men are at the hospital where he is currently being admitted putting surveillance on him because he is still a suspect.”
However, when LEADERSHIP SUNDAY visited the victim at the Barau Dikko Hospital where he is currently receiving treatment under strict police supervision, the wife of the victim told to LEADERSHIP SUNDAY that “the X-Ray confirmed that it was a bullet that was shot at him. He was operated upon and the bullet was removed.”
The hospital management when contacted declined to comment on the matter. The doctor who spoke to LEADERSHIP SUNDAY on condition of anonymity said, “When he was operated upon, a bullet was removed from his body, but we are not in position to say who shot him since we were not there. Meanwhile we are not going to release the bullet to the police or the family of the victim except there is going to be a court order to do so,” he said.
An eye witness, Japhet Adoga, who is a friend to the victim, also narrated to LEADERSHIP SUNDAY what, according to him, happened in his presence.
He narrated: “On Wednesday, August 3, 2011, at about 5.30 am, I called him (Desty Randy) and he said he was sleeping, and I asked him if he had heard that the police were looking for anybody bearing the name Randy in Mando, since there are about three persons bearing Randy in Mando area of Kaduna. But my friend, Desty Randy, said he was not aware of the police looking for any Randy.
“Then he drove down to my place in Mando at about 6.30 am. But the police arrested one other Randy, a chief of the area, who was later released on that very day.
“We went to the chief’s office to find out the true position and advised the chief to call the police to his office, and he did.
“When the police came in mufti, but wearing Operation Yaki jacket, they saw three of us talking and asked if he was Randy and he said yes and the police said he was under arrest.
“When Randy asked them what was his offence, they ignored his question, and quickly handcuffed him. Then one of the police came, and said, is this the Randy? and they said yes, and before you know it, he pulled a pistol and shot him on the stomach, and immediately Randy shouted and fell down. Then the other police asked why his colleague shot him.”
” Meanwhile, he dropped the pistol on the ground after shooting him; his colleague forced him to pick up the pistol. At this point, the police removed the handcuff from his hands, and carried him inside a private car and went away with him.” they collected his handset, so we could not communicate with him again.
“We tried to find out where they took him to, we went to the State CID, we went to Operation Yaki’s office, police Headquarters here, they directed us to the radio room, that the radio man should radio all divisions, if they are from the division, they should let them know because they said they are not aware of anything. We were in the radio room when Randy’s wife phone number rang, when the wife’s phone rang, it was a Nurse from the Nursing Home, Barau Diko hospital, saying that it is her husband that gave her the number, that he is on admission in the hospital. So the Corporal that was in the radio room that day said we should go to the hospital.
When we got to the hospital, the Nurse told us that it was police that brought Randy to the hospita, but that they have taken him for x-ray at Danmusa. We left the hospital for the x-ray centre, and we saw the policemen with him, but they were angry with us, saying that who directed us to the place”.
In the meantime, the wife of the victim has threatened to take legal action to demand justice as soon as the husband recovers fully.
As at the time of filing this report, the victim was still receiving treatment at the Barrau Dikko Hospital, after a successful operation.
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