Entertainment

Commotion As Burna Boy’s Police Escort shoots US Returnee, One Other At Lagos Club

Published

3 years ago

June 11, 2022

The Lagos State Police Commissioner’s Special Squad has detained five policemen attached to singer Damini Ogulu aka Burna Boy for attempted murder after they shot two fun seekers, Irebami Lawrence and another identified simply as Tolu, at Club Cubana in Lagos on Wednesday, The PUNCH can confirm.

The development comes just a few years after the Lagos State Police Command declared Burna Boy wanted for allegedly sending armed thugs to assault and rob fellow musician, Abiye Jumbo, aka Mr. 2Kay.

According to a preliminary police report by the Bar Beach Police Division in Lagos State, trouble started around 4am on June 8, 2022 when the musician and five police escorts visited Club Cubana in Victoria Island.

About four policemen waited outside while one of the policemen identified as Inspector Ibrahim, who was in mufti, accompanied the Grammy- winning artiste into the club.

According to multiple witness statements, the singer was in the VIP section with three women when he spotted another woman.

He was reported to have told Ibrahim to invite the woman to come join him.

However, the lady’s husband was said to have lambasted Burna Boy, insisting that it was disrespectful for any man to make advances at his wife.

After some minutes, Burna Boy was reported to have made fresh advances towards the woman.

This infuriated her husband further and his friends who had gathered at the club and the matter soon degenerated.

“As things were getting heated, Ibrahim brought out his service pistol and shot multiple times while Burna Boy was laughing,” said a senior policeman.

In the process, 27 year-old Lawrence was shot in the thigh while his friend, Tolu, was hit in the head by a bullet.

This caused commotion in the club.

Some people brought out their phones to record what was happening but the policemen began snatching and smashing phones.

“They eventually made their way out of the club and also shot into the air in order to escape. While all this happened, the Cubana management did nothing about it. In the first place, they ought not to have allowed anyone to bring in a gun into the club,” said a senior policeman.

It was learnt that Burna Boy and his crew drove off to one of his properties in the Elegushi end of the Lekk-Epe Expressway and later Lekki Phase 1.

“Aware of what he had done, Burna Boy took the next flight out without even informing his policemen. He only called them on video later to inform them that he had travelled to Spain. All his police escorts have been arrested and are currently at the command headquarters,” said a top source at the office of the Lagos State Commissioner of Police.

Sources close to the victims said the police were already making attempts to protect Burna Boy because of his status while the victims were treating their wounds at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja.

“They want to focus all attention on the policemen and absolve Burna Boy of blame. It is obvious that the police will not do anything about the matter just like in the case of Mr 2Kay,” said a friend of the victims.

In a chat with The PUNCH, a brother to the victim, who identified himself only as Jide, said his brother had undergone a surgery to remove the bullet from his thigh on Friday.

Jide further stated that Irebami, who is based in the United States, had only arrived in Nigeria a week ago for a wedding when the unfortunate incident happened.

He also berated the management of Club Cubana for not doing enough to forestall the situation, adding that the club management had not even reached out to the family since the incident occurred.

Jide added, “My brother and his friends came in from the US for a wedding when this thing happened. The annoying part was that Burna Boy was even laughing when this shooting was taking place. He approved of what they did.

“One of the bullets grazed my brother’s friend in the head while my brother was shot in the thigh. He underwent a surgery on Friday.

“The Cubana people are even denying that anything happened. They have not even reached out to us. It was only the morning of the shooting that a manager at the club, White Lion, interacted with us.”

Attempts to get a response from Burna Boy’s manager, Mrs. Bose Ogulu, who is also his mother, proved abortive as she neither responded to calls nor a text message on Saturday.

Similarly, Chioma Nwachukwu, a media consultant for Cubana, did not respond to calls on Saturday.

But the Spokesman for the Lagos State Police command, Benjamin Hundeyin, said the focus of the investigation were the policemen.

Hundeyin also claimed that the police had not received any complaint from any victim.

He said, “It was the policemen attached to him that shot and it is an internal disciplinary matter. They will explain why they had to shoot into the air and the outcome of their explanation during the investigation will determine what steps to take next.

“So, it is an internal thing with the police officers that were with him. Except you have news that Burna Boy was the one shooting; then we will have to investigate how he got the gun and all that. But what we have for now is that the policemen were the ones that shot.

“We are treating the policemen internally for disciplinary matters. We didn’t get a report of somebody being hit by a bullet. If somebody was hit by a bullet, anybody treating the person is supposed to have reported but we didn’t get any report of such. The investigation is ongoing.”

PUNCH.

Entertainment

Why I Prefer To Raise Kids In Nigeria – M.I Abaga

Published

1 day ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

Nigerian rapper and music executive, M.I Abaga, has revealed that he would prefer to raise his future children in Nigeria because of the country’s strong sense of family and community.

Speaking in a recent interview, the hip-hop star said Nigeria offers a more supportive environment for raising children compared to some Western countries.

According to him, the communal lifestyle in Nigeria makes parenting easier, as relatives are often available to help.

He said, “There are a lot of things appealing about home, especially because we’re already ingrained in that system. There’s a lot of support as well. I feel it’s very difficult for parents here.

“But if you have family, now you have enough people that can stay at home and support you. But it’s not easy, man.”

M.I contrasted this with life abroad, particularly in the United States, where many people work long hours and family members may not be available to offer help.

He added that while he understands the appeal of raising kids overseas, Nigeria provides a stronger foundation for children to understand their roots and culture before gaining exposure abroad.

Although M.I noted that he is not yet making concrete family plans, he emphasized that Nigeria’s close-knit culture remains one of its greatest advantages when it comes to raising children.

Entertainment

Oscar-winning Actress Diane Keaton Dead At 79 – Report

Published

5 days ago

October 11, 2025

Editor

Actress Diane Keaton, known for her Oscar-winning performance in 1977’s “Annie Hall” and her role in “The Godfather” films, has died at age 79, People magazine reported Saturday.

Details were not immediately available, and Keaton’s loved ones have asked for privacy, a family spokesperson told People, which confirmed that the actress died in California.

Keaton, a style icon, was a frequent collaborator of director Woody Allen, portraying the titular character in “Annie Hall,” the charming girlfriend of Allen’s comic Alvy Singer.

The film also garnered Oscars for best picture, best director and best original screenplay, cementing Keaton’s place as one of the industry’s top actresses and an offbeat style icon as well.

The actress made her mark co-starring in eight Allen movies, from “Play in Again Sam” (1972) to “Manhattan” (1979) and “Manhattan Murder Mystery” (1993).

As the Hollywood sexual harassment scandals detonated in late 2017, cascading from producer Harvey Weinstein to heavyweight actors like Kevin Spacey, old accusations of child sex abuse against Allen by his adoptive daughter Dylan, resurfaced.

“Woody Allen is my friend and I continue to believe him,” Keaton tweeted in January 2018.

A BAFTA and Golden Globe winner, Keaton scored Oscar nominations three other times for best actress, for “Reds,” “Marvin’s Room” and “Something’s Gotta Give.”

In “The Godfather” films, she played Kay Adams, the girlfriend and eventual wife of Al Pacino’s Michael Corleone.

Late in her career, Keaton starred in two movies about ageing women: “Book Club” (2018), with its message that love has no age, and “Poms” (2019).

“Poms” is the story of Martha, a terminally ill woman who moves to a retirement community to die, but winds up forming a cheerleading squad made up of female senior citizens.

As for ageing, Keaton said in a 2019 interview with AFP that life actually got easier.

“I think so, because what have you got to lose? It’s like it’s the truth. That’s what it is. You face it, we talk about it,” she said.

Born Diane Hall in Los Angeles on January 5, 1946, Keaton was romantically involved with Allen, Pacino and Warren Beatty, but never married.

“Most people in the movies get married at some point, and then they divorce. But I’ve never even got married. I am (a) failure,” she joked in the 2019 interview.

Did she regret it? “I don’t think about it a lot, but I’m aware of the fact that I’m unusual in that regard, and maybe I did miss out on something — but then, nobody can have everything, right?”

She is survived by her two children, Dexter and Duke.
AFP

Entertainment

Why I Can’t Quit Music – Erigga

Published

6 days ago

October 10, 2025

Editor

Nigerian rapper Erhiga Agarivbie, popularly known as Erigga, has revealed that he can’t quit music, stressing that he is doing it for passion and not for financial gains.

In an interview with Hip TV, Erigga noted that every year, some of his colleagues leave the music industry due to various circumstances.

However, he said he can’t quit because music is his life.

The rapper emphasised that his passion for music supersedes the financial and social benefits.

“Every year, people leave music for real-life issues. But I can’t stop. Music is life. It’s what keeps me going. Take the business and everything out of it, it’s more of a passion. I can’t disappoint my fans,” Erigga said.