A person sustained injuries on Monday morning after a vehicle exploded at the Shoe Materials Market in the Mushin area of Lagos.
Speaking during an inspection of the scene, Fatai Tijani, the Lagos Commissioner of Police, said the command received reports of the explosion and immediately deployed Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) personnel to the location.
According to NAN, Tijani said preliminary investigations indicated that the blast was caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) planted underneath the vehicle.
He explained that the device had been placed beneath the passenger side of the vehicle and exploded when the engine was switched on. The injured victim was taken to hospital and is reported to be in stable condition.
“We promptly deployed our EOD team after receiving reports of an explosion. The area was cordoned off and thoroughly searched,” the police commissioner said.
“The IED was under the vehicle by the passenger side. It exploded when the vehicle was started.”
Tijani added that fragments of the explosive device had been recovered and sent for forensic analysis.
Also speaking to journalists, Tajudeen Faronbi, the Baale of the Oke Mushin community, said the incident occurred at about 1 a.m.
Faronbi said he immediately alerted the area commander, who swiftly deployed security personnel to the scene.
“Early this morning, around one o’clock, while I was praying, I received a call that something unusual had been seen,” Faronbi said.
“When I got there, I saw a vehicle and people were afraid to go near it.”