The Department of State Services (DSS) has finally compensated a businessman who was mistakenly shot in 2016 during a raid. Initially ordered to pay ₦10 million by the court in 2018, the DSS delayed payment for six years but recently settled the amount, doubling it to ₦20 million as a goodwill gesture. The incident caused severe financial and personal hardship for the victim, who lost his business and home.
The operatives were in search of a suspected gunrunner who shared the same last name with the man but ended up shooting him on the thigh only to discover he was not the suspect they were after.
The operatives later that day arrested the actual suspect and transferred him to Abuja. But after shooting the businessman, they realised their mistake and rushed him to the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) where they abandoned him. As if that was not enough, the man was left untreated due to doctors’ strike and was eventually moved to a military hospital. Life took a devastating turn for the businessman after the incident. He lost his capital, his thriving fertiliser business, and became indebted. Unable to keep up with rent, he was evicted from his home. The injuries, coupled with financial struggles, forced him to relocate to Sokoto State with his family.
The aggrieved businessman approached the court with a rights suit which was decided in 2018 in his favour and the DSS ordered to pay N10million compensation, a debt that was only redeemed on Friday, March 15.
Redeeming the judgment debt, Director-General of the DSS, Adeola Ajayi, added another N10 million as a goodwill gesture to help the businessman rebuild his life.
Reliving the experience, the business
Recounting the harrowing experience, the businessman who requested anonymity due to security concerns said the operatives arrived at his apartment around 4:30am that day.
By Godspower Praise Tochi
Wow
ReplyDeleteWow
ReplyDelete