The Nigeria Police Force has disclosed that at least 1,666 Lagos residents were killed in unnatural circumstances, such as homicide and suicide, among others, between January 2020 and December 2024.
The NPF Force Pathologist, ACP Samuel Keshinro, disclosed this at the public presentation of the report on cases of femicide in Lagos State in Ikeja, on Thursday, themed, “Measuring femicide in Lagos State: Data, advocacy and action.”
According to Keshinro, the report, which focused on incidents involving homicide, suicide, misadventures, and other unnatural causes, aimed to create awareness and advocacy about the issue of femicide.
Data from the report shared with participants at the event indicated that out of the 1,666 deaths, 350 were women, 1,306 were men, while the gender of 10 others could not be ascertained.
The data indicated that 230 cases were related to female homicide, while 11 cases were female suicide.
Speaking on the importance of the initiative, Keshinro noted that the data were gathered to form the basis for informed decision-making and awareness about the menace of femicide.
According to him, the data had also revealed that most of femicide cases were perpetrated by intimate partners of the victims.
He said, “We have highlighted our findings using the police records at the State CID, Panti. We found that about 70 of the 350 female deaths were femicides, and we can see from the reports that intimate partner femicide is the highest.
“It just shows how vulnerable women are, especially where they are supposed to be loved, where they are supposed to have security, and it’s coming at the right time because November 25 is the UN-declared date for the elimination of violence against women.”
He, however, recommended the adoption of electronic data storage and improvements in the information-gathering process for cases involving crime investigation.
In his remarks, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Olorundare Jimoh, disclosed that, going by the available data from the year-long study, the cases of femicide in the state were low compared to its population.
He attributed the low femicide rate to the proactiveness of the police and other relevant stakeholders in the state, stressing that advocacy such as this would help to create awareness about gender based violence and ultimately prevent it.
According to him, the command would adopt recommendations from the findings of the report to draw up action plans in tackling crimes in the state.
He said, “It’s quite significant also to let you know that today I’ve drawn up a lot of action plans for which we are going to follow in further reducing the rate of femicide in the state
“Our pathologist and his team have carried out deep research using the available data, getting to what they have presented before us today. And we know in no small measure it’s going to help us to be able to up our game in this regard.
“Femicide is not something to be disregarded at all. We have trained the minds of our officers and equally their operational modalities to ensure that before it occurs, we prevent them because these dovetail from domestic violence before it leads to what is called a femicide.”
He urged members of the public to promptly report gender violence cases to the police, while assuring that such cases would be handled professionally.
“We want the ladies, the girls, and the women to brace up and to report promptly any case of violations, and for them to have the confidence that the police are approachable and that they can come to us. Gone are the days when some humiliating questions will be pushed across to victims at the police station.
“We have extended our training not only at this forum, but also to the division level, and equally to the area command levels, and equally to the criminal department, where the response to such incidents.”
In his remarks, the Chief Justice of Lagos State, Kazeem Alogba, commended the police for the data and noted that the data would help the state judiciary in making informed decisions in the administration of justice.
“I think that the takeaway for all of us is that you do not just want to look at it as it is said, and I have always told my colleagues and the magistrates, that every case file that comes before you is not just a set of transactions, it is about somebody’s life or livelihood, and that is the way you must always see the pieces that you are taking.
“On the part of the judiciary, we will commit to ensuring that we use this data properly. We’ll also be a partner henceforth in ensuring that this data is properly collected,” Alogba said.
PUNCH.
