BY OLASUNKANMI AKONI
LAGOS — The Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting at Alausa, Ikeja, Thursday, sentenced five of the 12 persons arraigned for attacking and assaulting officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, at Empire Junction, to 150 days imprisonment each without an option of fine.

Though 12 people allegedly committed the offence, seven were arrested while five are at large. Those arraigned include Ejike Obuke, Amos Philips, Eyo Edem, Abrah Sunday, Daniel Obigwe, Destiny Koseide and Ramsey Akpan.

They were charged with unlawful obstruction of official duties, assaulting the trio of Jimoh Yusuf, Ojabodu Jaiyeola and Adenuga Yusuf as well as breach of public peace.

Two of the suspects, Philip and Obigwe, pleaded not guilty to the charges and were granted bail by Magistrate Jade Adeyemi in the sum of N100, 00 each with two sureties each in the like sum, who must be gainfully employed with proof of evidence for seven years. The case was adjourned till 18th April, 2013.

Obuke confirmed this at the police post inside the agency headquarters, Oshodi that it was a vendetta against LASTMA officials and mentioned five other members of the gang which includes; Emeka, Sunday, Monday, Chinedu and Tochukwu who were at large.

Reacting to the  the judgment, the LASTMA boss, Mr. Babatunde Edu, recalled that the patrol team of the agency arrested a commercial bus that contravened traffic law at Ojuelegba and in the process of taken the bus to the LASTMA  office, no fewer than 12 men appeared and beat up the officers .

They freely used sharp objects such as broken bottles, machetes and screw drivers to stab the officers. It was during this chaotic situation that the bus was driven away from the scene by the offender.

Edu said it took the effort of the Rapid Respond Squad, RRS and other LASTMA officers to save the situation, even as he expressed the readiness of the agency to prosecute its aggressors who take laws into their hands by way of attacking or vandalising government property with little or no provocation