Man jumps into Lagos canal to evade arrest

The police command in Lagos State says a man allegedly jumped into a canal and died to avoid arrest in the Ipaja area of the state.

The command’s spokesman, Benjamin Hundeyin, stated this in a post he shared on his verified X handle @benHundeyin on Friday.

He said that the incident happened on Wednesday at about 10:00 a.m. in the Mosan Okunola area of Ipaja.

Mr Hundeyin, who was responding to a report that the man had an encounter with the police, who chased him into the canal, said the report was not true.

He said that the police visited the scene and met witnesses who voluntarily gave their statements regarding the unfortunate incident.

“The young man was a passenger on a motorcycle, riding against the traffic.

“Immediately they sighted the police approaching in their vehicle, the rider made a sharp u-turn while the passenger jumped off the motorcycle, crossed the road and ran through a nearby tipper garage.

“People in the garage who saw him running towards the canal and at the same time emptying the contents of his pockets agitatedly warned him about a canal ahead.

“He did not stop but unfortunately jumped into the canal,” the spokesperson said.