A teenager whose identity remains undisclosed met his untimely death in a hotel swimming pool in Owode-Ede, Osun State.
It was gathered that the deceased drowned in the pool at the hotel, situated along Osogbo-Gbongan Road, on Thursday.
The exact circumstances leading to the teenager’s death remained shrouded in mystery as of press time.
Twenty-four hours after the incident, a group of persons said to be angered by the hotel’s handling of the tragedy descended on the establishment and held a protest that threatened to degenerate into chaos.
However, sources within the hotel’s vicinity disclosed that swift intervention by policemen and personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps contained the situation before it could spiral out of control.
“The death was recorded in the hotel on January 1st. The deceased, a teenager (name withheld), died in the swimming pool of the hotel. He was confirmed dead.
“But on Friday, some people displeased with the manner the hotel management handled the situation stormed the premises and staged a serious protest.
“Police and NSCDC later intervened, and the matter was resolved,” an eyewitness said during an interview with Saturday PUNCH.
When Saturday PUNCH reached out to the Acting Police Public Relations Officer, Osun Command, Emmanuel Giwa-Alade, on Friday, he authenticated the incident while dispelling suggestions of mob action.
He said, “It wasn’t a mob action. It was the family of the victim that went back there to express their grievances, and when they got there, the whole thing was later settled amicably. The victim died inside the hotel swimming pool.”
Responding to enquiries on police action regarding the incident, Giwa-Alade disclosed that investigations into the tragedy had been set in motion.
“Investigation is being carried out. We are on the matter, and whatever we find out, we will let the public know,” Giwa-Alade said.