Mother, 14-month-old daughter killed by robbers in Lagos

The deadly robbery attack that took place in Festac Town, Lagos, claimed the life of a mother and her young daughter.

 

Tuesday, October 13, would forever remain a day of sorrow for the family of Jane Beluchukwu-Ndirika, as it was the day the young nurse working at the Igando General Hospital, and her 14-month-old baby daughter, Nmesoma, were felled by stray bullets fired at their Block 8, 23 Road, home in Festac Town, Lagos State, when over 40 deadly armed robbers stormed the area and laid siege to two banks.

The mother and daughter were reportedly killed after the robbers shot sporadically at houses in the area to prevent anyone raising any alarm.

 A resident of the house where Ndirika and Nmesoma were killed, narrated how they pair died:

“While the shooting was going on, every one laid on the floor in their respective apartments.  I was with Jane in her parlour while her child was inside the room.  Suddenly, the child started crying and the mother stood up to carry her.

As she was coming to the sitting room with the baby, a stray bullet perforated the window, hit the baby in the chest and also got the mother on the left side of her shoulder. 

Immediately, she took the child back to the room and started shouting for help. Nobody came to her rescue because people were running helter-skelter for dear life.”

After the robbers had made good their escape, another neighbour identified as Irabor Sunday, reportedly rushed the victims to the Mother and Child Hospital at the First Gate in Festac where they were confirmed dead.

This is not the first time armed bandits would be holding Lagos to ransom. In March 12, 2015, armed robbers numbering over 20, had stormed the Lekki Peninsula through the Lagos Lagoon and held the area to ransom for more than an hour in which time they robbed a bank, carting away millions of naira, with five police police officers and a fish seller killed in the process.

A few weeks later, it was the turn of Ikorodu when another gang led by a woman attacked two banks simultaneously where they made away with over N80 million while injuring many people in the process.