ACP drowns in swimming pool on Valentine’s Day
THE Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of the Area K Command, Morogbo, Badagry, of the Lagos State Police Command, Osung Ekpo, has drowned in a hotel’s swimming pool in the Ajah area of the state.
PUNCH Metro learnt that Ekpo died on Sunday, Valentine’s Day, at about 5pm while swimming at the hotel.
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This is just as the state Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, said the command had no suspicion about the death of the ACP until an autopsy report revealed any reason to investigate further.
Our correspondents gathered from reliable sources that Ekpo was in company with friends on Sunday and had decided to swim when he drowned in the swimming pool.
He was said to have been rescued from the pool by policemen and hotel workers, who rushed him to a nearby hospital.
But he reportedly died shortly after he was admitted, and was pronounced dead by the doctor on duty.
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Our correspondents learnt that Ekpo’s corpse was deposited in a morgue while investigations were ongoing to unravel the cause of his death.
A police source at the command headquarters, Ikeja, told one of our correspondents that Ekpo was doing some laps as a form of exercise when he got drowned.
He said, “This incident is a bad Valentine’s gift to the police. The ACP died in a swimming pool at a popular hotel in the Ajah area of Lagos. He was in company with his friends, who had come there to celebrate Valentine’s Day with him. He decided to swim and he got drowned.
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“He was quickly rushed to a hospital, but he did not make it. Several teams of policemen have stormed the hotel as investigation is ongoing.”
A close friend of the deceased, who did not identify herself, described him as friendly, adding that it was unbelievable that he drowned.
She said, “When I heard about the death, I could not believe it. How could he have drowned? It was not his first time of swimming, so what could have happened? I have yet to come to terms with the news of his death.”
PUNCH Metro learnt that the victim, who was married with children, hailed from Akwa Ibom State.
He was said to have been the Divisional Police Officer in Ajah before he was promoted to ACP.
A top police chief, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the deceased had been living in the hotel for a long time.
He said, “He had been living in that hotel since he was the Divisional Police Officer in Ajah. He was an area commander with a difference and his death is a shock to many of us.”
Another friend of the deceased, Joy, who lamented the death on Facebook, wrote, “You were my best friend. I loved you with every bit of me and above all you were a father to me. You told me to keep faith in the New Year and you never stopped making me smile with the way you treated me. Oh death, why did it have to be ACP Osung Ekpo? You were just too nice and full of life. You taught me all I know today as a young lady. You were a helper. I love you and will never stop loving you.”
The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, confirmed the incident.
She said, “It is true that we have lost ACP Ekpo, the Area Commander, Area K Command, Morogbo. He was exercising in a swimming pool when he died.”
The CP, Owoseni, told PUNCH Metro that Ekpo was instrumental in recovering weapons used by bank robbers in the Agbara area of Ogun State.
He said the command would only have a reason to suspect a foul play in the ACP’s death if the autopsy report confirmed that.
He said, “Ekpo had gone to exercise in the hotel, but he died in the course of the exercise. His exercise was swimming, and he had done some press-ups and preliminary running around before jumping into the water.
“At the moment, the command does not have any reason for suspicion. The body is in the morgue, and a post-mortem will be carried out. Suspicion will only come in when the autopsy comes out.
“On a personal level, Ekpo was a pleasant officer, and he had been effective in most of the operations we carried out in the command. An instance was the last bank robbery in Agbara, Ogun State.
“Through his efforts as the Area Commander in Morogbo, Badagry, he and his men in conjunction with the Rapid Response Squad successfully foiled the move by the robbers to infiltrate Lagos State. And that was why we were able to cage them on water.
“He also led the operation to recover the gunboats and canoes used by the robbers which led to their eventual arrest. Since July that I came, we have not recorded any bad incident in the state from that area.”
