Police refute claims of motorist who allegedly lost his teeth in fight with traffic warden

The Lagos State Police Command has said Kingsley, the driver who engaged a traffic warden in fisticuffs yesterday at the Omole bus stop in Ojodu area of the state, lied about losing his teeth during the fight.

It will be recalled that on Tuesday, the traffic warden, Sunday Charles, who was with three female officers and four officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, had stopped Kingsley’s vehicle at the bus stop.

Charles, allegedly demanded N50 from the motorist before he could let him go. However, trouble started when Kingsley claimed that he had earlier given N50 to the warden, adding that he would not give him another until evening.

Charles allegedly insisted on collecting the money and was said to have dragged Kingsley down from the vehicle and punched him in the face, during which the motorist’s three teeth allegedly fell off.

The motorist and some people in the bus had bundled Charles up and threatened to drag him to the Ojodu Police Division for assaulting the driver.

But reacting to the incident, a senior officer at the command on Wednesday said the motorist lost the three teeth in an accident a few years ago, adding that the claim by Kingsley that the traffic warden’s punch yanked off the teeth was not true.

The police source, who spoke on conditions of anonymity, disclosed that the police in Lagos had located the driver.

The police source said, “The police brought Kingsley in for clarification on the incident, during which we gathered that Kingsley lost the three teeth to an accident two years ago.

“He told the police that the warden did not remove his teeth and added that Charles did not demand N50 as he earlier claimed. The fight was because he beat the traffic light and the warden ordered him to stop but he did not,” the source told The Punch.

The Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, SP Dolapo Badmos,also confirmed that Kingsley was invited for interrogation, adding that the injured warden was driven to Ikeja after he was rescued from the motorist by a team of policemen.

“There were fisticuffs,” she said, stating that the motorist and his conductor blocked the way because they had beaten a traffic light.

“They wanted to make a U-turn at that junction, but the warden did not allow them. There was no demand for N50 and the motorist lost his teeth in an accident which he had two years ago.

“It was during the struggle that the warden’s hand grazed the driver’s lips. The blood was as a result of the injury to his lips,” Badmos confirmed.