Ogun state Police Command on Monday said it has arrested 25 suspects and declared a Police Inspector missing over violence which broke out in Ifo, Ifo local government area of the state.
A young man identified as Akeem was reportedly shot dead in the violence, while arsonists razed down the constituency office of the Deputy Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Olakunle Oluomo, where his five buses were burnt.
Daily Trust gathered that some police officers attached to Zonal Intervention Squad Zone 2 on Sunday evening had trailed a young man suspected to be in possession of gun, to the grand finale of Akoogun Festival in Ifo.
It was further learnt that the police officers after arresting the suspect were prevented from taking the young man away.
In the process, the gun-wielding police officers reportedly shot dead one of the young men and disappeared into thin air.
The aggrieved young men were said to have regrouped and threw caution into the wind, protesting against the murder.
The Commissioner of Police, Bashir Manama, on Monday led his men to the scene for an on-the-spot assessment.
The Command’s spokesman, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, told newsmen in Abeokuta today that both campaign office and five buses parked at Coker Bus-stop, belonging to Oluomo were burnt by the arsonists.
He said the young man was killed by a stray-bullet while the policemen were making efforts “to scare the mob which was ready to attack them.”
According to Oyeyemi, men of the zonal Intervention Squad had already arrested a suspect for being in possession of guns.
DSP Oyeyemi said: “Now, a police inspector is missing. The police inspector was macheted during the mob attack and up till now his whereabouts is unknown. That gave the credence that they were attacked.
“Some people mobilised themselves and attacked the office of the Deputy Speaker, burnt down the office and five vehicles in that area.
“The correlation between the incident that happened and the reaction of the people is what we cannot establish because there is no nexus between the two.
“For now, we have arrested 25 suspects. The issues are two: the case of murder and arson.
“But, the case of arson is what the people have committed. That act is pure criminal, there is nothing that warrants the spontaneous action, ” Oyeyemi said.
