My Son Was Killed after Fighting Rapists in London, Says Hon Dolapo Badru

Matilda Omonaiye/

Details have emerged on the circumstances surrounding the Sunday night murder of the son of a Nigerian lawmaker on a street in London.

Abraham Badru, 26, has been declared a hero in the British media, after investigations revealed that he was killed after he stopped a teenage girl from being raped.

NewsmakersNG learnt that the late Badru was the 10th person to have been murdered in London in the past 12 days.

According to the police, he was shot on Sunday night in Hackney, east London, where he lived.

The victim was the son of a member of the Nigerian House of Representatives, Mr Dolapo Badru, and he worked as a football coach after getting a Masters degree in sports coaching from the University of Gloucestershire.

The 62-year-old father said that his son was given an award by the police for fighting off rapists trying to attack a teenage girl and went to court to testify against them.

He was gunned down as he got out of his car after visiting church that day, reports the Evening Standard. His mother was present when he was killed. She allegedly collapsed on the ground in tears as her son passed away beside her.

The police were called to Ferncliff Road shortly after 11pm on Sunday, where Badru was found fatally wounded. One witness who lives near the scene described hearing ‘one shot and a cry of pain’ before he saw the man lying on the ground.

Badru’s friends described him as a ‘bubbly and outgoing’ young man who was ‘making a life for himself’ after completing his studies. He had a fiancee in Nigeria and was due to be coaching at a football match on Tuesday.

Detective Chief Inspector Larry Smith, from Scotland Yard’s murder squad, said: “We are appealing for information so we can establish the circumstances which led to a young man losing his life. Anyone with information who hasn’t yet spoken with us should come forward without delay.”

Officers carried out house-to-house inquiries on Monday, while distressed family members and friends were seen visiting what is understood to be the victim’s home. One neighbour said: “As soon as I heard the bang, I knew it was a gunshot. I’m ex-military and knew that couldn’t be a firework.”

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