There is palpable tension in Sagamu town, Ogun State, following the alleged killing of a footballer, Tiyamiyu Kazeem, the Assistant Captain of Remo Stars Football Club, a Nigerian National League side, by policemen attached to the State Anti-Robbery on Saturday afternoon while returning home from the club’s weekend training session in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital.
Eyewitness accounts at the scene of the incident alleged that the footballer, popularly known as Kaka, was allegedly chased by the SARS operatives before he was shot.
“The SARS operative labelled him as a Yahoo boy and started chasing him. Even when people who know him intervened and told them he is a footballer, they refused to let him be.
They chased him until they shot him, wounding him fatally,” an eyewitness claimed. After shooting him, the officials ran away, leaving Kazeem to his fate. He was later rushed to Fakoya Hospital, Sagamu, by sympathisers, where he was pronounced dead.
The Remo Stars Football club announced Kazeem’s sudden passing away on their official Twitter handle. The Nigerian National League side stated that they are doing everything to investigate the cause of his death.
“We regret to announce the departure of our assistant captain and defender, Tiyamiyu Kazeem (Kaka). The club is doing everything possible to investigate his ultimately death. May his soul rest in perfect peace.”
Angry residents took to the streets across the town to protest the murder of the footballer who many described as talented and hard working.
A close friend of the deceased, Bolaji Soluade, who spoke with our correspondent, confirmed his untimely death and blamed the SARS operatives for the incident.
According to him, one of the officers was apprehended by residents after the shooting but was rescued by other policemen before the mob could do him much harm.
Youths in Sagamu went wild with rage when the news filtered to them that the young man who was earlier in the day arrested in Sagamu alive without resistance, and taken to Abeokuta, was allegedly shot dead later by the police halfway into their journey to Abeokuta.
It was learnt that quick intervention of senior police officers who moved in quickly to douse the tension saved Sagamu from turning into chaos.
