LASTMA official kills self after ‘stabbing’ lover

Lagos State Traffic Management Agency LASTMA

An official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) has allegedly killed self in Zoo area, Araromi, Morogbo after stabbing his lover, police have said.

Lagos police spokesman, Bala Elkana, in a statement on Sunday said the police received report of the incident at about 1am same day.

The LASTMA official, Emmanuel Mekuri, 47, was said to have stabbed Patricia Ogunshola, 37, on her right thigh with a Jack knife.

Mr Elkana said in the statement: “Alarm was raised by the 13-year-old daughter of the woman (whom she got from a previous marriage), which drew the attention of neighbours to the scene. In her statement, the girl stated that the deceased person, whom she referred to as her stepfather, made further attempts to stab her mother on the head but she quickly ran out of the room. That he subsequently stabbed himself on the stomach, his intestines gushed out and he died on the spot.”

Ms Ogunshola, the spokesman said, is currently in stable condition in an undisclosed hospital while the deceased has been moved to a mortuary for autopsy.

“Preliminary investigation revealed that the couple started cohabiting in February, 2020, but not legally married. There was a protracted argument between the couple that degenerated into physical assault purported to have arose from allegations bothering on infidelity on the part of the man,” Elkana said.

He added that the police commissioner, Hakeem Odumosu, had ordered the immediate transfer of the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department Panti, Yaba for “discreet” investigation.