Nigerian Citizens Association South Africa (NICASA), on Thursday, expressed shock over the murder of a Nigerian, Kingsley Ezeh, whose death was allegedly caused by the South African police.
According to the President General of NICASA, Benjamin Okoli, Mr Ezeh’s death on Tuesday was circumstantial in the hands of members of the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD).
According to him, members of the JMPD had invaded Mr Ezeh’s tyre shop in the late evening of January 4, where they allegedly manhandled while trying to extract information from him.
He also accused the police officers of choking the deceased, leading him to his death.
Mr Ezeh was said to be going about his normal business activity when metro police officers with an unmarked black-BMW vehicle arrived conveying his brother that they arrested earlier at a different location.
The NICASA boss said, “What led to the death of Ezeh on January 4, remains a mystery which will be unravelled by police investigation.
“The shop is fitted with a CCTV camera, which we believe will be instrumental and helpful in unravelling the case.
“From indication and the brother’s account, they choked the deceased for several minutes, at the same time asking him to vomit what they assumed he had swallowed; the choking caused asphyxiation.
“Two other Nigerians in the area had allegedly accused same group of Metro Police officers of attacking them only few months ago using plastic bags to cover their heads and they almost died.
“Both Nigerians maintained that nothing was found on them at the time of the attack against them; the police stopped them while driving, after searching their cars and found nothing, insisted on extorting them certain amount.”
According to him, because they didn’t pay the bribe, they were attacked and nearly killed with the plastic used to suffocate them by the said Metro officers.
They also accused the Metro officers of stealing their phones and money.
“We are currently discussing with these two Nigerians, to see how we can add their case to this death as evidence of a pattern of attack by these group of Metro Police against Nigerians.
“The Metro Police had claimed that the late Ezeh ingested substance they suspected is narcotic when they came into his shop and they claimed he had suffocated by the substance he ingested.
“Paramedics were called to the shop where he was confirmed dead on the scene; the leadership of NICASA monitored the situation and ensured that protocols are followed to secure evidence,” he added.
He described Mr Ezeh’s death as an unnecessary and systemic xenophobic way of killing Nigerian nationals by the members of the South African police.
He went on to say that the police could have arrested and prosecuted the deceased, if he was a criminal. He said the deceased’s death was just one out of many other similar cases where Nigerians are killed without justification.
Hence he urged the Nigerian community to stay calm until the association received the result of the post mortem, while following up the casevyo reach a logical conclusion.
Mr Ezeh, a native of Oduma, Aninri Local Government of Enugu State, is survived by his wife and children.
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