Christopher Oji 

Family members and witnesses to the ghastly motor accident that killed Mr Christian Iwarah on Friday have accused the Dopemu Police Division of doing a shoddy investigation into the matter. 

Iwarah, who until his death, was General Manager, Corporate   Communications of Air Peace Airline, lost his life last Friday when a luxury passenger bus rammed into him at Dopemu area of Lagos,

Julius Iwarah, one of the younger brothers of the deceased, alleged that on his way to Dopemu he sighted policemen towing away the bus that caused the accident.

When he approached the police to show them the exact scene of the accident, the policemen declined. He had to contract a commercial motorcycle operator who led him to the site.

At the site of the accident, the damaged car of the deceased was left there.

Also speaking on the matter, Barrister Abel Iwarah, alleged that the investigating police officer was making himself inaccessible and making it difficult for the family to make a formal statement and complaint on the matter.

Abel added that the police officer said he was charging the matter to court on Monday and insisted that he won’t be at the station for them to make a statement.

When our reporter visited the scene of the accident, only the vehicle of the deceased was found by the side of a badly crushed fence and gate leading to a church.

Also speaking to our reporter, Pastor Esther Elijah of the Gospel Power Evangelical Ministry decried the attitude of policemen who visited the place.  She showed journalists how the bus almost killed worshippers who were praying in the church as at the time of the incident.

She alleged that policemen harassed her when she asked them to also take the deceased vehicle along with the bus they were towing.

“The policemen started harassing me saying what right do I have to talk to them even if my church building and properties were destroyed.

“Since the bus rammed into my church, all the passengers exited the vehicle into our premises as the only safe zone when the accident happened.

“I wondered why they showed more interest in the bus leaving the car and issues concerning the deceased and damage done to my properties

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“One of the policemen said the owner of the bus will just go and see the Commissioner of Police, who will order the release of the bus back to him.

“When I asked them to take the small vehicle along, the policemen said they effected the towing of the bus with their personal money and that family of the deceased should come and tow his vehicle.

“I was surprised that the policemen were taking some valuables from the deceased’s car and were more interested in using their personal money, as they claimed, to move the bus which is bigger and more expensive.

“The owner of the vehicle or his insurance company has not been approached.

A witness, Malik Musa, said the police had spoken to the owner of the bus through his phone.

According to how,  “the driver of the bus said the steering pulled off and it was difficult for a diesel engine brake to respond immediately.

“It was my phone the driver and police used in contacting the owner of the bus.

“The owner of the bus called my line after some time saying they should meet him at the police station. He spoke to the police through my line. I thought he would be humane enough to come here and see the damage done to human life, vehicles and other properties.

“From all indications, the police seem to have ignored everyone affected by the accident. The special care and interest they are showing in the bus is suspicious.

“I will advise family of the deceased to seek to transfer the case from that police station.

“The policemen were only interested in what to take away from the dead man’s car. I saw them taking some things away.

“It appears they are shielding the owner of the bus company from us and he is only interested in taking his bus back from the police as soon as possible.

“The transport company is careless about vehicle maintenance. A vehicle’s steering cannot suddenly pull off without giving some signs.”

Until he joined Air Peace, the deceased was a staff of The Sun Newspapers.