Man severely burnt with hot oil for alleged theft in Lagos market
An unidentified man is battling for his life after being doused with hot oil by a mob for allegedly stealing groundnut oil at a market near the Alakara Police Station in Mushin, Lagos State.
The incident reportedly occurred on Friday. According to a local source who spoke anonymously, the man had posed as a customer and attempted to steal a bottle of groundnut oil from a stall while the shop owner was distracted.
However, another trader reportedly spotted him in the act and raised the alarm.
“He pretended to be a customer, and while the shopkeeper was busy, he grabbed a bottle of oil. He didn’t know someone had seen him.
That was how he was caught,” the witness said. “He was stripped naked, beaten, and the mob heated the oil he tried to steal and poured it on his back.”
The assault left the man with severe burns. He was later found unconscious and abandoned in a nearby gutter, just a short distance from the police station.
Concerned resident Omoluabi Ifeoluwa, who raised the alarm on a community WhatsApp group, said he received a distress call about a lifeless body lying near the Alakara Police Station for over two days without receiving any help.
“I immediately contacted the Medical Officer of Health and the Health Supervisor of Mushin Local Government, as well as the Divisional Police Officer at Alakara. I also arranged for an ambulance from the Lagos State Emergency Services,” he said.
Upon arrival, the rescue team discovered the man in critical condition.
Eyewitnesses at the scene confirmed he was the same person accused of attempting to steal groundnut oil and subjected to the brutal punishment.
After initial medical attention and cleanup, he was taken to a general hospital, which reportedly refused to admit him.
Ifeoluwa said he was advised to transfer the victim to Gbagada General Hospital but could not proceed due to lack of support and institutional assistance.
Speaking on the incident, Divisional Police Officer Enyinna Nwankudu confirmed that the man was rescued from the drainage with the help of local government health officials. “He was initially presumed dead, but he was alive. He has since received medical attention,” Nwankudu said.