Nigeria: Delta State Uni Student, Ify Gabriel Nwainokpor and Friend Kasim Beaten to Death by Lagos Vigilantes

Footage of two men from the Nigerian state of Lagos being beaten to death by vigilantes after being mistaken for robbers has drawn global condemnation.

Delsu Student Ify Gabriel Nwainokpor and his friend Kasim were attacked and hacked to death by a mob in the Ajara area of Badagry while police officers from the Badagry division allegedly stood by and did nothing.

According to local reports, both men were accosted by angry residents on the lookout for strange faces following a robbery four days earlier. An argument erupted after which Nwainokpor and Kasim were hunted down and attacked.

However, Nwainokpor's father, Samuel, told online publication PUNCH Metro that his son was arrested while passing through a street in the area but a misunderstanding later ensued and the mob pounced on him and Kasim.

"The mob picked up sticks and beat them to death. Policemen were there," he said.

The graphic eight-minute clip posted on YouTube shows the lynch mob beating the handcuffed victims with bats and poles and putting tyres on their necks.

One irate mob can be seen in the video, shouting, "die, die, burn them, burn them".

One viewer said: "Nothing they did or did not do justifies this. All it takes for evil to persist is for good men to say nothing."

Another commented: "Simply a product of a dysfunctional system. Is this the kind of legacy they want to leave their children?"

State police spokeswoman, Ngozi Braide, condemned the actions of the mob and appealed for calm.

"The incident is quite pathetic. Even if they were armed robbers, no one has the right to take the life of another," she said.

"Why then do we have the police and the judiciary? The Nigerian police as well as the law condemn mob action and jungle justice. The commissioner of police has set up a high-powered investigation body to investigate the matter."

In October 2012, four Uniport (University of Port Harcourt) students were stripped naked, severely beaten and burnt alive by vigilantes for allegedly stealing BlackBerry phones and laptops.