Outrage as landlord’s son allegedly stabs hip-hop artiste in the neck

The Police have arrested a 22-year-old man, Tobi Obadina, for allegedly stabbing a budding female hip- hop artiste, Temitope Bankole a.k.a Tiwa Banks.

The Ogun State-born crooner, who recently released a song titled Tiwan tiwa, had sustained multiple injuries in her head, neck, shoulder and other parts of her body during the attack.

Trouble was said to have started on Sunday at their residence on 20, Yusuf Street, Araromi, Iyana-Ipaja, Lagos State, when Obadina, Tiwa’s landlord’s son, accused her of being disrespectful. Tiwa was said to have quietly walked out on Obadina in order to avoid a confrontation with him.

Her silence was said to have angered Obadina, who returned at nightfall to launch an attack on the unsuspecting artiste who had retreated to her room.

There were hordes of sympathisers at the private hospital in Iyana-Ipaja area of Lagos State where Tiwa was receiving treatment when our correspondent visited.

Recalling the incident in an interview with our correspondent, Tiwa said: “I had just returned home from an outing at about 6 pm on Sunday December 9, 2012 when Tobi accused me of disrespecting him. I was actually trying to prepare something to eat when he accosted me and threw away the box of matches I was holding. He said I was becoming too pompous and threatened to deal with me.

“I tried to take some water into my apartment and he again slapped me on the chest. I warned him to desist from harassing me and I quietly walked away from him in order to avoid trouble, not knowing that he was nursing something evil in his mind.”

Continuing, she said: “Surprisingly, at about 7.30 pm, he returned to announce that he had come to finish my ‘beautiful face’, and that I would forever live to regret the encounter. He then broke the louvers of the window to my apartment and poured water in my room through the window.

“There was power outage. I was trying to lit the room when he forcibly broke into my room and stabbed me in the head, neck region, shoulder and other parts of my body. He even stabbed Lanre, my younger brother who was with me in the room and ran after him, threatening that he would kill him for daring to intervene.

“One of my neighbours who had intervened was also stabbed by him. His father maintained silence while the attack lasted. He left me in a pool of blood and ran away, thinking that I was dead.

“Some neighbours actually brought me to the hospital. I thank God for being alive because his intention was to sneak into my room to kill me, not knowing that my brother was with me.

“His father came here to plead for amicable settlement of the matter. But that is too late in the day. I want the full weight of the law to be brought down in the matter.”

Tiwa’s younger brother, Lanre, shared his experience, saying: “I was not around when he initially confronted my sister. But I had returned home shortly before he came back to carry out the attack. The room was dark because there was power outage, and I guessed he deliberately seized that opportunity to actualise his mission, not knowing that I was around.

“He broke into our apartment and stabbed my sister. And when he discovered that I was also in the room, he came after me and also stabbed me in the arms.

“He actually tried to stab me in the chest but I had to run away. He gave me a hot chase, boasting that he would kill me. By then, my sister had fallen down in a pool of her blood and other tenants were scared to rescue her because Tobi had earlier stabbed a neighbour who tried to intervene.

“Although he ran away for two days, he has since been arrested by policemen from Iyana-Ipaja Police Station where he is being detained.”

Tiwa’s mother, Mrs. Loye Bankole, described the attack on her children as shocking and barbaric.

She said: “It is an act of barbarism for a man to unleash horror on a lady. I was so shocked when I saw my daughter’s mutilated body despite the fact that I had earlier asked Tobi’s father to call his son to order following his aggressive acts towards my children.

“I thank God that my children are responding to treatment.”

Tobi’s father was sighted by our correspondent at the hospital at about 5.30 pm on Tuesday in company with some clerics he had apparently brought to help intervene in the matter. But they were turned back by Tiwa’s siblings who insisted that the law must take its course.

At the residence of the victims, some neighbours who spoke with The Nation said Tobi had become a threat to residents.

One of them, who asked not to be named, said: “Tobi used to work as a commercial bus driver until recently when he claimed to have been employed as a driver in a beverage company based in Mushin. But he had been terrorising residents for a long time while no one dared query him.

“His father did not help matters with his silence. The attack on Tiwa by Tobi should not be swept under the carpet because that would amount to injustice.

“Tobi does not live in the house but comes here every other day to harass residents. He has been squatting with one of his friends in Oki village near Iyana-Ipaja, and that was where he initially ran to for two days after carrying out the attack.”

In a telephone interview with our correspondent, Tobi’s father, Pa Obadina, 75, said his son’s action was regrettable, adding that his son’s detention by the police was weighing heavily on his health.

He said: “The incident is a sad one, and I can tell you that everyone, including myself, is not happy about the misconduct of my son. He (Tobi) is currently detained at the Gowon Estate Police Station, Alimosho.

“I am a 75-year-old man and I cannot deceive you. I am not pleased with my son’s misconduct because his arrest and detention is already affecting my health.”

The spokesperson of the Lagos State Police Command, Ms. Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said although she had heard about the incident, she could not comment officially because she had not been briefed by the DPO of the station concerned.

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