Yesterday, pandemonium broke out at the bus stop after Mr Charles, engaged the motorist, identified only as Kingsley in fisticuffs. Kingsley, who was stopped by a team of traffic wardens at the junction, was beaten up by Mr Charles after he refused to part with a N50 bribe.
Following the incident, local people in the area manhandled Mr Charles and threatened to drag him to the Ojodu Police Division for the assault on the driver before some pedestrians advised them against reporting the incident. Mr Charles, who was with three female officers and four officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (Lasthma), had stopped Kingsley’s vehicle at the junction for no apparent reason.
Mr Charles allegedly demanded N50 from the motorist before he could let him go but trouble started when Kingsley claimed that he had earlier given N50 to the warden, adding that he would not give him another until in the evening. After this, Mr Charles, who allegedly insisted on collecting the money, was said to have dragged Kingsley down from the vehicle and punched him in the face, during which the motorist’s three teeth fell out.
After this, Kingsley held on to the warden and demanded medical treatment. A large crowd was said to have gathered at the scene and tried in vain to separate the warden and the motorist who held each other’s clothes.
Kingsley said: "I am a commercial driver. The warden stopped me about 8am and I gave him N50, so I was surprised when he asked me again.
“I was going towards Agidingbi Road when he stopped me and demanded another N50 but I refused, saying he should wait till the evening. He dragged me from the bus and started punching him on my face and my mouth started bleeding, so I realised three of my front teeth had fallen off and grabbed his uniform."
He added that people bundled the traffic warden inside his vehicle and said he should take him to the police station. According to Kingsley, he suspected that the warden was drunk because of the way he dragged him from his vehicle.
Eyewitness Abiodun Dada, said that other traffic wardens and Lasthma officials, who were embarrassed by Mr Charles’ action, later calmed down enraged motorists. He added that were it not for the wardens and the Lasthma officials who begged angry motorists, the gathering could have turned violent.
However, police spokesman Dolapo Badmos, said it was the motorist and his conductor who assaulted the traffic warden, adding that Mr Charles’ uniform was torn during the attack on him. He added that they are looking for both of them to bring them in for questioning.
“The traffic warden was beaten by a commercial bus driver and his conductor who are still at large. His service uniform was torn to pieces but he was rescued by a team of policemen deployed in the scene but the case will be dealt with decisively,” Mr Badmos added.
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