A 21-year-old tailor, Oluwabamise Ayanwole, who was recently declared missing has been found dead. A Lagos Bus Rapid Transit driver, Andrew Nice, alleged to be involved in her abduction has been arrested.
The police also said the remains of the victim had been recovered.
Oluwabamise, who closed from work around 7pm on February 26, was on her way to visit her brother, Pelumi, when she boarded the BRT vehicle around Chevron Bus-stop, in the Lekki area of the state.
The busman, Omininikoron, was said to be conveying the victim to a destination in Oshodi when Oluwabamise observed that he refused to pick other passengers on the road.
She reportedly contacted one of her colleagues at work, Felicia Omolara, to inform her about her suspicion and she was advised to disembark from the bus.
Omolara, however, noted that when her friend no longer responded to her chats on WhatsApp, she called her phone number, adding that when she picked the call, a man was heard arguing with Oluwabamise.
Oluwabamise’s former boss, Caroline Oni, confirmed that her corpse was recovered in the Ebute Ero area of the state.
While fighting back tears, Oni said, “I have seen Bamise’s corpse. We saw her corpse yesterday (Sunday). Someone sent a message to me on Twitter that I should go and check Ebute Ero Police Station that the policemen attached to the station recovered a corpse.
“I called one of Bamise’s brothers and we both went to the station. When we got there, we saw the picture of the corpse that was recovered and I immediately identified it.
“I even recognised the clothes she wore. The policemen at the station said they saw her bleeding from her private parts around 9pm. They were to take her to a hospital, but she died. Her corpse was deposited in a mortuary at Yaba. Her brother and relatives visited the mortuary to identify her body.”
The victim’s elder brother, Pelumi, confirmed that the family visited the mortuary.
He, however, denied that her private parts were missing as stated on social media.
Pelumi said, “Our firstborn, Peter, went to the morgue to confirm if it was Oluwabamise’s corpse before breaking the news.
“My brother told me he didn’t see that her private parts were missing. I initially believed what I heard in a video made by eyewitnesses who said her private parts were missing. But my brother said he checked her corpse in the mortuary and there was nothing like that.”
It was learnt that some family members and friends of the victim staged a protest on Monday to demand justice for Oluwabamise.
Pictures of the deceased and BRT buses were seen on a banner with the inscription, ‘We want justice for Oluwabamise.’
The state Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Adekunle Ajisebutu, in a statement, said the corpse had been recovered.
He said, “The Lagos State Police Command regrets to inform the public that Oluwabamise Ayanwole, who got missing in transit while onboard a BRT bus on Saturday, February 26, 2022, has been found dead.
“The corpse was found lying on the Carter Bridge by Ogogoro community, Lagos Island. The corpse has been deposited at the morgue of the Mainland Hospital, Yaba, for an autopsy.
“The bereaved family has been contacted and family members have identified the corpse as that of Oluwabamise Ayanwole, the lady earlier declared missing.
“The Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alabi, is saddened by this incident and, therefore, expresses, on behalf of the management, officers and men of the command, his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.”
