Police Arrest Landlord For Demolishing Tenant’s Apartment

  The Lagos Police have grilled a landlord, Mr. Lateef Rasaq, for allegedly demolishing the apartment he let out to a 74-year-old man, Mr. Olaitan Oshinubi.
It was learnt that Rasaq was arrested by policemen attached to the Denton Police Station, but was later released on the grounds that the incident “is a family matter." PUNCH Metro learnt that Rasaq had allegedly ordered his cousin, Wasiu Oriaiye, to demolish Oshinubi’s apartment,
claiming it needed to be renovated. Our correspondent gathered that the apartment on house 7, Bola Street in the Ebute Meta area of Lagos, was inherited by Rasak. He and his cousin, a commercial driver, reportedly inherited two apartments each from their grandfather, who owned the property. It was gathered that Oshinubi, a retired electricity worker, had visited a relative on a Friday in September, 2014 only to come back and meet his apartment demolished. The septuagenarian also said his clothes, television and radio sets among other household items had been carted away before he returned home on the fateful day. Our correspondent, who visited the area, observed that the apartment was a storey building with its ground floor being used as kitchen and toilet by all the tenants. Oshinubi said, “Rasaq and Oriaiye have treated me badly, not minding my age. The police arrested Rasaq, but they did not handle the matter properly. I believe I can still get justice.
“Truly, the flat needed to be renovated, but I was surprised when I came back home on the fateful day and met my flat in rubble. Some of my items had been stolen while some were trapped.
“I learnt Rasaq ordered Oriaiye to demolish it. I had to stay for days at a friend’s house before I could rent another apartment." Speaking with our correspondent on the phone, Oriaiye said the demolition was done “in good faith”, adding that he gave Oshinubi a week notice. He claimed he did not see any valuable item in Oshinubi’s apartment before the demolition.
He said, “Other tenants complained to me that the apartment might collapse at any time. I discussed with my uncle on its renovation and we met with a carpenter and a bricklayer to estimate the cost. I used the rent we collected from the two shops we let out to buy sand and granite.
“Rasaq said his tenant did not want to pay the balance and ordered me to demolish the apartment. I gave Oshinubi a week notice to pack out but he refused. The old man did not have a bulb in the rooms, let alone electronics." The Lagos State Police spokesperson, DSP Kenneth Nwosu, said Rasaq was only invited for questioning, adding that he was released having discovered that the matter was civil.
“The landlord was not arrested. We invited him for questioning and it was discovered it is a family issue. It is a civil matter which can be sorted out in court,” he said.