BRT incident: Bamise was a virgin, killers damaged lower body part — Brother

On Thursday, Oluwapelumi Ayanwole, the elder brother of the deceased Bamise who was discovered dead after boarding a BRT bus in Lagos, said that his sister was a virgin.

This was said by Oluwapelumi, a witness for the prosecution in the rape and murder trial of BRT driver Andrew Ominnikoron.

A Lagos High Court is hearing evidence in the case of Mr. Ominnikoron, who is accused of five counts that include murder, rape, and conspiracy.

He is also charged with raping Maryjane Odezelu, another passenger, in November 2021.

However, he entered a not guilty plea to each charge before Tafawa Balewa Square justice Sherifat Sonaike.

The driver and his accomplices, according to Oluwapelumi, harmed a lower body area of his sister.

Moyosore Onigbanjo, the commissioner for justice and attorney general for the state of Lagos, presented him as evidence.

The dead was the tenth and final kid, according to his testimony.

The witness claimed that on February 28, he learned about his sister’s suspected murder.

He said that on February 27, he received a call from his brother, who was based in Kano, asking about the deceased.

“I immediately called home to find out about Bamise,” he said.

The witness said that while the deceased was on the BRT, she exchanged voice notes with one of her friends, Felicia.

“I was alarmed when the friend sent the voice notes they shared on WhatsApp,” he said.

The witness further said that the following Monday, he went to the BRT Terminal Three to report the matter but was directed to the Lagos Bus Service Ltd. (LBSL).

“We were referred to two CSOs and they said that none of the drivers reported a case of a missing person.

“I asked to have access to their CCTV camera so that we could know what transpired in their vehicles,” he said.

The witness told the court that the officials told him to get a police report to be able to access the CCTV ( Close Circuit Television) camera.

He said he was “badly treated” at the police division he went for the report, and had to go back to the LBSL where one Mr Aluko admitted that a bus was missing.

He said that he wrote a letter to the Office of the state Commissioner of Transportation, Lagos State Metropolitan Area Transport Authority and the state House of Assembly.

He added that his family also reported the case at the Jakande Police Division where an official said that it was no longer a case of a missing person but a kidnap case.

“On March 7, someone said we should go and check Ebute-Ero Police Station. On getting there, we showed them a picture of my sister.

“I was told she died on the night of February 26 and the police took over the body,” he said.

The witness also said that he found his sister’s body at a morgue and it was tagged unknown.

The voice note exchanged by the deceased and her friend was admitted by the court in evidence.

In the voice note, the deceased said that she was alone in the bus and the driver had refused to pick up other passengers.

In the second voice note, she said that the driver had taken a lady and three males into the bus.

Then, the friend asked her if she had got to her bus stop but the message wasn’t replied.

Describing the ‘damaged’ pubic area, the witness said, “I saw traces of blood in the lower body part.”

At this point, defence counsel, Abayomi Omotubora, asked the witness to explain what he meant by “damaged lower part.”

“My sister was a virgin. Do you want me to describe how two to three men raped my sister? I will not do that,” the witness said.

The trial will continue on October 25.