Night guard murdered over revenue collection crisis

A security night guard at the popular Lagos Street market in Benin, identified as Oboh John, has reportedly lost his life in the supremacy battle between Osula and Obazee family over revenue collection from traders in the market.

Another guard was reportedly beaten to a state of coma by a yet to be identified gang while goods worth millions of naira, including weapons were carted away after the security guard was killed.
One of the traders, Ebere Okafor, who spoke to journalists on Sunday, said she lost cash and goods to the rampaging gang.
“Most of my goods worth two million naira were carted away. We want security in this market. I discovered that our shops were broken into. They took the money I kept,” she said.
A leader in the street, Omuwa Elegon popularly called Madam Lagos, attributed the killing and robbery to ongoing rivalry between the Osulas and Obazee over revenue collection.
“The area boys are the cause of this. Some of them want to eat beyond what they have agreed upon. They are extorting money from the people. The chairman said the money collected from the traders is too much.
“Those of us assigned to collect revenue don’t collect up to N100. Some of the watch night were killed in that house. Shops in my house were broken into. They dragged the guard to somewhere and killed him,” she narrated.
Edo Police Command spokesman, DSP Noble Uwoh, said he was yet to be briefed on the incident.
It would recalled that three persons were injured last Wednesday when both families used guns and dangerous weapons to fight over revenue collection.
It could however not be ascertained whether the revenue both families were fighting over was for the Oredo Local Government Council as the state government has since outlawed street trading in the state, but it was gathered that streets traders were made to part with some money in allowance for trading. The amount ranges from N200-N600 daily