Court jails teenager for raising false fire alarm in Lagos estate

A teenage boy, Solomon Uzuokwu has been sent to prison by Bambo Odueke of the Magistrate Court in the Ogba area of Ikeja, the state capital, but with an option of a fine and a month of community service for breaching the public peace and making a hoax fire emergency call.

The Deputy Director, Public Affairs, Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Agboola Ololade disclosed in a statement on Friday that Solomon ‘s punishment includes making a campaign against false calls within the jurisdiction of the state.

However, the convict opted to pay a fine.

The Magistrate passed the minimum verdict of the law on him after the defendant showed remorse and did not waste the time of the court by pleading guilty to the charges.

The ruling also follows the court’s acknowledgement of the noble firefighting profession and the ‘effective service delivery of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service that requires the encouragement of all and sundry’.

The Director of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Mrs. Margaret Adeseye, expressed satisfaction with the swift prosecution of the case to serve as a deterrent to other citizens in the habit of making false calls and misleading emergency responders.

Adeseye also used the occasion to note the seeming reduction in false calls since the advent of the case and pledged to work with the culprit in using his community service as another medium to reach a large audience among other efforts being championed by the agency.

The culprit reportedly placed a call on Friday, April 14, 2023, at 17:35 hours to Harmony Estate, Langbasa, Ajah, Lagos and reported a fire emergency within the estate, leading to the dispatch of the Lekki Phase II Fire Service Station.

On arrival of the firefighters at the estate, all efforts to trace the acclaimed fire outbreak were not successful.

He first appeared in court on Wednesday, April 19 but the matter was adjourned till Thursday for the conclusion of the matter in record time to ensure that justice was not denied.