How two dogs attacked me - 9-year-old narrated

A nine – year-old boy, Moyinoluwa Banwo, has narrated how he was attacked by two dogs at the Greenland Estate in Ibafo, in the Obafemi Owode area of Ogun State.

Moyinoluwa, a basic five pupil, was attacked by the dogs which injured him in the leg, chest and face on Tuesday, February 24, 2015.

He was said to be playing with his friend, Ezekiel, when the dogs were let loose by their owner, one Mr. Okolo Nwachuwku.

While Ezekiel, six, escaped and ran into the house, Moyinoluwa was not so lucky as he was attacked by the dogs.

After the attack, he was rushed to a hospital in Ikeja before being transferred to the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu.

This is coming few months after a four-year-old boy, Omonigho Abraham, was similarly attacked by two German Shepherds in the Igando area of Lagos State.

The latest victim of dog attack, Moyinoluwa, narrated that on Saturday he was playing at his friend’s house when the dogs’ owner, who lived beside the residence, opened his gate.

He said, “I was at the front of Ezekiel’s house where we were both molding cups with sand. The man opened his gate and the two dogs came out.

“I was bending down and didn’t know that the dogs were coming. Then suddenly, they leaped on me. I held one of them by the neck, but they still attacked me.

“They bit me in the legs, chest and face. The owner of the dogs later came to take them away.”

His friend, Ezekiel, told our correspondent that the dogs had first come after him, but he was lucky to have escaped.

The six-year-old said, “The dogs attacked me first, but I quickly ran to the backyard and escaped. It was after that they started pursuing my friend and he ran, but he tripped. Then, they attacked him.”

The dogs’ owner was said to have later taken the victim to the Ikeja Medical Clinic where the doctor asked him to get anti-rabies vaccine, which was not readily available at the clinic.

The victim’s father, Mr. Femi Banwo, said he was in his office in the Apapa area of Lagos when he was called that his son had been hospitalised.

He said he rushed down to the hospital where he met his son with the injuries.

He said, “The owner of the dogs took my son and wife to the clinic. The doctor said he would give the boy anti-rabies injection. He asked Nwachukwu to buy it and he agreed to.

“Very early, the next day, Nwachukwu said there was no need to take my son to the hospital again, saying that he should just take the anti-rabies injection.

“I told him he needed to show the doctor the anti-rabies vaccine. I was very angry with the way he was handling my son’s treatment.”

He said he decided to move his son to OOTH when Moyinoluwa’s legs began to swell.

The matter was later reported at the Ibafo Police Station and Nwachukwu was arrested.

It was learnt that the DPO arranged a meeting between the suspect and the victim’s family, where it was agreed that Nwachukwu would release his dogs for test.

The boy’s father said the suspect, however, did not show up with the dogs.

He added that the police were, however, able to arrest Nwachukwu and his dogs, as he was attempting to take them away from the area.  But on the way to the Ibafo station, one of the dogs died.

The matter was said to have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Ogun State command, Muyiwa Adejobi, confirmed the inciden.

He added that investigation was ongoing.

Culled: Punch