Teenager Shot by Landlord Dies 24 Hours After Surgery
A 16-year-old student, Paul, who was shot by a landlord on Monday for retrieving a ball from his premises, has died 24 hours after undergoing surgery.
The teenager, a student of Urban Secondary School in Owerri, was shot in the waist and had been battling for his life at the Specialist Hospital, Umuguma, Owerri.
According to Paul’s guardian, Mr. Jonathan Odikanwa, the teenager passed away on Thursday afternoon. Odikanwa, a septuagenarian, had appealed for prayers for Paul’s recovery on Wednesday as he was being wheeled into the theater for surgery.
The distraught guardian expressed his grief, saying, “He has passed away. My son has passed away. The doctors just said they lost him.”
The incident occurred on Monday when Paul jumped over the school fence to retrieve a ball that had entered the landlord’s premises.
The landlord, who has not been identified, got offended and shot Paul in the waist. Odikanwa said that despite the surgery, the doctors were unable to save Paul’s life.
He added that the X-ray did not show the bullet in Paul’s body, but doctors had to operate when they discovered that his bowel movements were impeded.
Paul had lived with the Odikanwas for about eight years and was in JSS 1 at Urban Secondary School.
The Police Public Relations Officer for the Imo State Police Command, DSP Henry Okoye, confirmed the incident and the arrest of the landlord who shot the teenager.
