A Nigerian man has been killed during a police raid in Vaal near Johannesburg, South Africa.
25-year old Ibrahim Badmus was killed barely one week after 35-year-old Jelili Omoyele was shot dead in Johannesburg over an alleged 300 Rand (about N7,500) parking lot debt.
According to eyewitnesses, the victim was allegedly handcuffed, tortured and suffocated while being questioned by about three policemen at his home.
One of the witnesses, a flat-mate of the deceased and a Congolese, Steve Lumbwe, said, “I found Omo (the deceased), my tenant on handcuff. There was a plastic where they put paper spray on him.”
“I asked the police ‘why are you doing this to him’? They said he’s a drug dealer, he must take out the drug and I was like ‘no, he doesn’t sell drugs’.
“My tenant was on handcuff and he started calling ‘Steve, I can’t breathe’. I started fighting with them and tried to help the guy but the other one (police officer) took me out as well.
“So when I went back inside, Omo was sleeping, looking at them and the police officers were like ‘he just fainted’ that they would call the ambulance,” Lumbwe added.
The Nigerian Consul General Godwin Adama and the Police Commander of the local police station Brigadier Nikiwe Hoeane were at the scene, calling for calm while investigations were ongoing.
