Sex worker killed in Lagos car park

                                Scene of the incident
|                               credits: Olaleye Aluko

Some yet-to-be identified persons on Monday caused confusion on Idowu Taylor Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, after they stabbed a sex worker to death in a car park in the area.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the lady, identified simply as Joy, was discovered in a pool of blood with stab wounds at about 5.30am.

Our correspondent gathered that Joy hailed from Delta State. The 25-year-old, who residents said was also a commercial sex worker, reportedly had two kids– a girl and a boy.

It was learnt that Joy, who had sent her daughter to stay with a relative in Port Harcourt, went to the park with her three-year-old boy on Sunday night when she was believed to have been stabbed to death.

When PUNCH Metro visited the area, it was gathered that policemen from the Victoria Island Police Division came at about 11.30am on Monday and took the corpse away.

Our correspondent observed blood stains at the spot where Joy was killed, as they were being cleaned off by security officials.

The car park, it was learnt, is used by employees of commercial banks and other organisations on the street.

A resident, Mr. Afeez Ibrahim, told PUNCH Metro that although Joy was a sex worker, most people on the street liked her and had assisted her in the past so that she could leave the job.

Ibrahim said he suspected that Joy’s killers might have had an intention to rob her, during which they killed her when she resisted them.

He said, “Joy is a well known woman on this street. We all liked her except for the work she did. She called herself a street hustler who needed to take care of her children. She is Urhobo. On Sunday evening, she was still seen around the car park.

“We were shocked when we woke on Monday morning to find her corpse with knife injuries. Her attackers stabbed her twice on the back. She was found in a pool of blood.”

A worker in the area, who begged for anonymity, told our correspondent that Idowu Taylor Street and neighbouring Adeyemo Alakija Street were a hub of commercial sex workers.

The worker added that Joy’s little boy, identified simply as Emmanuel, said he saw some men in black around his mother.

He said, “The police have tried to stop the commercial sex workers by raiding the streets a number of times. But when they raid, they later release them. When you come in the evening, you will see the ladies hanging around the parks.

“The boy is just about three years old. He was sleeping some metres away from his mother. When the people tried to find out what happened from the boy, he simply said he saw some men in black around his mother. I feel the boy was actually asleep and might not have seen the assailants clearly enough.”

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Kenneth Nwosu, confirmed the incident. He added that the police were investigating to apprehend the killers.

He said, “A policeman from Victoria Island, who saw the corpse, went back to the division to report and the body was taken away. There were stab wounds on the head and in the back. The body is now at a morgue and an autopsy will also be conducted. Investigation is ongoing on the matter.”