The Lagos State Police Command yesterday stated that the publication by a national daily that the girl, who had sex with a dog had died was a fake.
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Benjamin Hundeyin, said that the command’s attention was drawn to a publication, which stated that the girl had died, just as police had declared her wanted for bestiality.
According to Hundeyin, the publication was done on May 10, 2022, and it was credited to one Kayode Ajiboye, working with a national daily in Lagos State.
Hundeyin said: “Since it has to do with an ongoing police investigation, the Lagos State Police Command reached out to the author of this article for information that would help the police conclude/close the investigation. Shockingly, however, the author claimed he could not verify the story but simply lifted it from an online blog. Not only did this author not credit the original source (plagiarism) of the news in consonance with the simple ethics of journalism, but he also made no attempt to fact-check the news, thereby making himself susceptible to the spreading of fake news, especially knowing how critical and sensitive the facts in issue were.”
The image maker noted that available facts suggest that the author was in cahoot with the wanted suspect to help her evade justice, which was a criminal offence.
“While it is the duty of every Nigerian to support the police in an ongoing investigation, it is an established fact that it is criminal to publish false information with the intent to mislead the public. It is equally criminal to subvert criminal investigation and obstruct police officers in the discharge of their duties. In line with its stance on transparency, the Lagos State Police Command brings this update to Nigerians and gives assurances that the ongoing investigation has been re-focused appropriately. While available leads are being followed, the Command encourages anyone with useful information on the matter to make same available to the police using any of our available communication channels.”
