By Naomi Chima
The man who jumped into the lagoon at the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge area of Lagos on Tuesday has been identified as Buka Abana.
This is just as rescue workers succeeded in retrieving Abana’s corpse on Thursday after days of searching.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the 30-year-old, believed to be a drug addict, had left his Lekki Phase I residence about two days before the incident.
It was further learnt that his family members who had formed a search party for him later received information that he was sighted around the bridge and decided to go after him.
A source who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the matter said, “The man lived in Lekki Phase I. He had been taking Colorado. He was missing for two days and his family members were searching for him.
“They got information that he was seen around the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge and they rushed there to take him home.
“Unfortunately when he sighted them, he quickly jumped into the lagoon.”
The state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed the development in an interview with our correspondent.
“The man’s name is Buka Abana. He was aged 30. He had been taking Colorado hard drugs.
“He left home for two days and in the process of searching for him, he sighted the family members and jumped into the lagoon as soon as he saw them,” the PPRO said.
Earlier, the Head, Public Education of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Services, Amodu Shakiru, in a statement confirmed that Abana’s lifeless body was recovered on Thursday.
The statement read, “The Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service can authoritatively report that the body of one adult male that jumped into the lagoon on Tuesday, August 8, 2023, from Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge has been recovered today (Thursday).
“The search and rescue operations began in earnest immediately after the alert of the incident was received around 2.53pm and culminated in the recovery of the body today (Thursday) around 9.15am at the LASEMA end of the lagoon bank.
“The collaborative efforts include that of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Lagos State Waterways Authority, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Lagos State Health, Environmental Monitoring Unit and the locals to foreclose the joint operations.”
According to a separate statement by the Permanent Secretary, LASEMA, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, Abana’s body was handed over to the family after the operation.
“The recovered body has been handed over to the family of the deceased in conjunction with the LASEMA Response Unit, SEHMU, LASWA Rescue Team and officers of the Nigerian Police Force from Maroko Divisional Police Station, and operation has been concluded,” the statement read.
Source: The Punch
