Fisherman kills colleague during disagreement

A 28-year-old fisherman, Samson Arubiewe, is in police custody after beating his colleague, Suleiman Kareem, 26, to death over a disagreement that ensued between them during a fishing expedition.

It was learnt that the duo had on Monday gone for the expedition on Itegbin water in the Okokomaiko area of Lagos State before the incident happened around 4pm.

It was gathered that the suspect had warned Kareem not to operate within the spot he was navigating but the victim refused.

Kareem’s resistance led to an argument and Arubiewe reportedly vowed to deal with him when they returned to the shore.

It was learnt that after the exercise, the altercation resumed at the waterside and later degenerated into a scuffle.

Kareem was said to have slumped after Arubiewe attacked him with a charm.

A resident of the area, who identified himself only as Sodiq, said Kareem died at the spot, adding that youths nabbed Arubiewe as he made to flee the scene.

He said, “Both are fishermen and had gone fishing on Monday morning. While they were at sea, they had a disagreement over the terrain of fishing. Samson (Arubiewe) warned Suleiman (Kareem) not to trespass on the area he was, and the former said everybody had the right to fish where he pleased.

“They started abusing each other. Other fishermen tried to mediate but Samson refused; he felt Suleiman was rude to him.

“When they got back to the shore, the altercation continued and resulted in a fight. It was in the process that Samson brought out a charm and used it to hit Suleiman. He fell and before people could rally round to take him to a hospital, he was dead.”

An eyewitness, Samuel Dadi, told our correspondent that there was a misunderstanding between the duo prior to the incident, adding that the fight over space for fishing was only a trigger.

He said, “For some time now, both of them were not on good terms. I don’t know what led to it but that was what sparked off their argument at sea. It is not out of order if two persons search for fish around the same spot, especially now that there is drought.

“The charm he used to beat Suleiman has no antidote. He wanted to run away but we held him and took him to the community leader, who handed him over to the police from the Ajangbadi division.”

A fisherman, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the deceased lived alone and worked hard to fend for himself.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, said the deceased had been deposited at the Badagry General Hospital mortuary while the case was under investigation.

She said, “At about 6pm on Monday while the Divisional Police Officer, Ajangbadi division was patrolling the Itegbin waterside, he saw a crowd near the baale’s house where he discovered that one Suleiman Kareem of Babakuda bus stop Itegbin was allegedly beaten to death by one Samson Arubiewe during a disagreement about fishing in the river. The case is still under investigation.”