Some illegal passengers on an Iddo-bound train on Monday allegedly battered two photojournalists in Ikeja, Lagos State.
The incident comes less than a week after a photojournalist with Leadership newspaper, Mr. Benedict Uwalaka, was brutalised by some mortuary attendants at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja.
The victims, Mr. Idowu Ogunleye, who is the photo editor of The News/PM News; and Tunde Ogundeji, the former photo editor of Nigerian Compass; were assaulted while trying to take pictures of the illegal passengers.
Ogundeji, who spoke with our correspondent on the telephone, said the culprits beat them to a pulp and also seized Ogunleye’s camera.
He said, “Around 7:30am, Ogunleye and I were around Ikeja along Bus Stop when we noticed that many passengers were hanging on the train. We climbed the pedestrian bridge and took pictures of the train but some of the passengers alighted and came to challenge us.
“I was able to run and quickly gave my camera and bag to someone else but unfortunately for Ogunleye, he wasn’t fast enough and his camera was seized. They also beat him. I quickly rushed towards the police division near the Ikeja Local Government Secretariat but the culprits caught up with me and asked for my camera. When they couldn’t get the camera, they beat me up as well.”
Ogundeji said he went to report the matter at the State Traffic Division but the policemen said they were only in charge of traffic and not other criminal matters.
He said they advised him to report the matter at the Area F Division.
Ogundeji said a railway official later retrieved the camera but the memory card had been removed.
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