“I Thought He Came To Settle The Fight” – Bariga NURTW Member Stabbed By Police Inspector Battling For Recovery In FMC Oyingbo

Olowolayemo is currently on admission at the Federal Medical Centre, FMC, Oyingbo, Lagos, where he was referred to from Gbagada General Hospital after losing a large quantity of blood from a deep stab wound to his stomach.

Speaking from his hospital bed in a weak and shaky voice, with his stomach heavily bandaged and drip attached to his hand, Olowolayemo recounted how what started as a minor disagreement between two commercial drivers at the park turned into a bloody nightmare.

According to him, he was performing his duties as a branch official, trying to mediate and settle a misunderstanding between two drivers over loading rights at the park at about 4pm on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, when Inspector Njoku Augustine, attached to Falomo Police Hospital, appeared at the scene.

“I was at our park in Bariga around 4pm. There was a small misunderstanding between two drivers. One said the other took his turn. I was trying to settle it peacefully because that is my job as official. Then Inspector Njoku came. I thought he came to help settle the matter because he is police and people respect police,” he narrated.

What happened next, he said, still feels like a dream.

According to the police report, the inspector allegedly brought out a jackknife during the argument and stabbed Olowolayemo directly in the stomach.

“I did not know he had a knife. I did not see any knife in his hand. We were just talking. Suddenly I just felt a sharp pain in my stomach. I looked down, blood was everywhere, soaking my shirt. People started shouting, ‘Blood, blood’. If boys at the park did not rush me, put me on bike and take me to Gbagada hospital, I would have died,” he said.

Medical personnel at FMC Oyingbo who spoke on condition of anonymity said the victim arrived in critical condition but is now stable and responding to treatment after emergency care.

At his bedside since Tuesday is his wife, Mrs. Rukayat Olowolayemo, a petty trader, who has not left the hospital.

“My husband left home in the morning to go and look for daily bread. He told me ‘I will come back in evening.’ Next thing, someone called me that my husband has been stabbed by police and is in hospital. My heart cut. If not for police from Bariga Division who came quickly after the distress call and helped, I don’t know what would have happened to him,” she said, fighting back tears.

For Olowolayemo, who has been a transport worker for 12 years to feed his three children, the incident has left him physically and emotionally shaken.

“I respect police. I always cooperate with them. I never thought a police officer would stab me like a criminal. I am not a criminal. I am just a transport worker. I just want justice and I want government to make sure this does not happen to another person,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Lagos State Police Command has confirmed that Inspector Njoku Augustine is in custody, that the jackknife allegedly used has been recovered and registered as an exhibit, and that investigation and disciplinary actions have commenced.

The Command’s spokesperson, SP Abimbola Adebisi, assured that justice will be served and urged members of the public to remain calm.