Ajiran Community Murders: CSOs commends Lagos Police Command over arrest of masterminds

Some Civil Society Organizations have jointly applauded the Lagos State Police Command for having up-the-ante in their efforts to aide the cause of justice, with the recent  apprehension of one Alhaji Ahmed Tajudeen Akanbi allegedly declared wanted over the murders of two indigenes of Ajiran community in Eti-Osa locality.

This new development according to the CSOs affirms the resolve of the Police Command to ensure that crime perpetrators no longer enjoy freedom or get shielded from the arms of the law in any form going forward.

In a jointly addressed press briefing by Comrade Alex Omotehinse the President Centre for Human and Socio-Economic Rights (CHSR), Comrade Deji Adebowale the National Coordinator,
Centre for Economic and Human Rights Advancement (CEHRA) and Comrade Buna Olaitan Isiak, Executive Director Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA) on Wednesday in Lagos, the group maintained that the new twist in search of justice for the Murders of Mr. Sheriff Ishola Salami and Prince Kazeem Ademola Akinloye on Tuesday, April 18, 2023 and on Monday, August 26, 2024 respectively, will boost morale of the moral compass of the society.

“We were pleased that Lagos State Police Command under the immediate past Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olohundare Moshood Jimoh apprehended some suspects and declared the masterminds wanted at a press briefing held by the immediate past Commissioner of Police at the Command headquarters on Thursday, February 19 2026.

“It is gratifying that the prime suspect: Alhaji Ahmed Tajudeen Akanbi has finally been apprehended by the police.

“We commend the Nigeria Police for the relentless commitment to ensuring that the murder cases are resolved.

“It is reassuring that the prime suspect has been apprehended in Cotonou, Benin Republic on April 15, 2026 by the International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) and currently being held in the custody at the Zone 2 headquarters of the Nigeria Police, Onikan, Lagos.”

The group insisted that the Police while clearly playing its constitutionally enshrined role should not be muzzled.

“We are deeply encouraged by the progress made so far by the Lagos State Police Command with the arrest of the prime suspect in spite of the well-orchestrated plot to distract the police from performing its legitimate duty.”

Giving a trajectory of the bizzare occurrence, CHSR which had been in the forefront of groups championing the call for justice on the matter noted that the apprehension of Alhaji Akanbi is clearly a good omen targeted at dealing a deadly blow on unchecked spate of criminalty.

While charging the media to be wary of supposedly compromised groups who parades self as rights advocates, but are hell bent on sabotaging and frustrating the Police and by extension the course of justice in the case of the two Ajiran indigenes who were gruesomely murdered.

“It would be in the overriding interest of justice if those found culpable of perpetrating as well as aiding and abetting the murders of Mr. Sheriff Ishola Salami and Prince Ademola Akinloye are made to face prosecution in the law court following the conclusion of diligent investigations.

“We maintained that justice must not only be done but must be seen to have been done with respect to these murder incidents that have brought untold distress to the families of the victims.

“It has however, become pertinent to draw the attention of the media to deliberate and self-serving antics of certain individuals masquerading as genuine civil society stakeholders but whose aim is to pervert justice through unfounded and misleading campaigns and aspersions against the police authority in Lagos State.

“These individuals, for whatever reasons, appear ruffled and disgruntled by the arrests of suspect: and particularly the determination of the Lagos State Police Command in apprehending Alhaji Ahmed Tajudeen Akanbi whom prima facie evidence already established as the architect of the multiple murder incidents.

“Prior to the arrest of the prime suspect; Alhaji Tajudeen Ahmed Akanbi, the suspects already in the custody of the Lagos State Police Command include Safiu Fatai a.k.a. Fabo (40) and Yusuf Ismaila a.k.a. Bariga, who according to the police, were apprehended on January 24, 2026, and February 6, 2026 respectively, following renewed investigations into the murder incidents.

“We commend the leadership of the immediate past Commissioner of Police in Lagos State AIG Olohundare Moshood Jimoh (now in charge of  Zone 2) for his courage and dedication to the cause of truth and justice.

“It is important that we alert media to the ill-motivated campaigns of these self-styled civil society actors motivated by the desperation to undermine legitimate investigation by the police authority in Lagos State.

“We maintain that it remains the absolute constitutional duty of the police to carry out investigation in criminal incidents.

“We take exception to the hypocrisy and deceits in the guise of playing the role of watchdog for which credible platforms of the civil society are reputed.”