The Lagos State Police Command has given the official version of events leading to Sunday night’s murder of advertising expert Sesan Ogunro, Group Managing Director of Eminent Communications & Spot-On Media, Lagos.

Ogunro, it would be recalled, was shot by yet to be identified assailants at the entrance of his church, the International Church of Christ, Jobi-Fele Way, Central Business District Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, at about 9:30 p.m. and died later in hospital, aged 61.

According to Lagos spokesperson Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP): “About 22:42 hours (10 pm) on December 22, a distress call was received by the Alausa Division of the police command. It was gathered that four armed men operating in a Honda Odyssey attempted to snatch a Mercedes Benz ML jeep belonging to Mr Ogunro.

“The man resisted and threw away the key of the jeep, hence the armed men shot him. They abandoned the Honda Odyssey and escaped with a red Toyota Yaris car belonging to the wife, who was standing with him on the scene.

“The scene was visited immediately by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) and a team and the incident was confirmed. The DPO also visited the victim at the Lagoon Hospital where he was receiving treatment, though critical.”

Braide disclosed that the Honda Odyssey with which Ogunro’s killers operated was snatched from somebody identified as Ali Balogun at Ebute-Metta at 8pm that Sunday. She said the owner was reportedly dropped on Jobi-Fele Way in Alausa, Ikeja, from where she was taken to the Alausa Police Station.

Braide disclosed that the police has started investigating the incident and the search for Ogunro’s killers.

The police theory that Mr. Ogunro was killed because he resisted the armed robbers and threw away the key of his jeep, is however, contrary to the eyewitness account of one of his sons, Timayo, who recounted the circumstances of his father’s death thus: “It was a night of Christmas carol at the church. After the main carol service, people went down to eat. There was a man who tried to steal some money from someone and my father caught him. Other deacons and the minister of God started talking to the guy about what happened. That took some time.

“So, as this continued, people started to leave the church premises. Eventually, it was just myself, my mum and my dad, some children and a few disciples of the church who remained behind.

“My dad said I should take my mum and the children home, since it was getting late. We went outside and my mum remembered that she left some water in my dad’s car. So, my dad went to get the water from across the road. As I was about to open the door for everyone to get in, the gunmen came in a blue Sienna. I saw what happened but I couldn’t hear what they were saying.

“There were five of them. They spread out. Three of them came to me and hit me. I went down and gave them everything in my hand, including the car keys. I went down with my mum and the kids while two of the attackers walked up to my dad. He wanted to take the keys to his car but my dad told them: ‘Just take it; just take it.’ You know these guys: obviously, they were high and they just shot him.”

•Photo shows late Sesan Ogunro.

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