Lagos passenger crushed to death during fight over motorpark

Policeman

Chaos erupted in the Alaba Rago area of Iba, Lagos State, on Sunday following a violent scuffle between road transport workers, popularly known as agberos, and supporters of a local monarch.

The clash, which reportedly began in the early hours of Sunday, led to the death of a yet-to-be-identified passenger who was crushed by a speeding vehicle.

Multiple eyewitnesses told PUNCH Metro that the conflict stemmed from the recent launch of a motor park allegedly constructed by the monarch for vehicles travelling to the northern and eastern parts of Nigeria.

“The monarch built a park at the Alaba Market side of the road. It was unveiled on Saturday for vehicles going to the North and East,” a resident identified only as Shola said.

“But the road transport workers were not comfortable with the development. The CP (Commissioner of Police) was even there. There was a tussle over the park between the monarch and some of the agberos. That’s what led to the fiasco,” the resident added.

According to residents, the agberos allegedly saw the new park as a threat to their existing system of collecting levies from drivers in the area.

Tensions escalated when supporters of the monarch and the transport workers clashed on Sunday morning. Punch