AT least one person was yesterday confirmed dead after suspected cultists went on rampage around Pako, Yeside and Cassette bus stops in Aguda, Surulere area of Lagos State. This came a day after Sunday’s cult war in Ilasa, which claimed another life.
Also, two persons have died and scores of residents injured when members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) clashed in Lagos yesterday. Of the two killed during the ongoing clash was a chairman of a unit in Ijesha, Surulere axis.
The police spokesman, Bala Elkana said police teams from the Special Strike Force on Social Miscreants, Rapid Response Squad, Area C Command Surulere, Aguda and Ijesha Divisions were mobilised to the scene and the situation brought under control, adding that “75 suspects from both sides were arrested.”
It was gathered that the incident started in the early hours of Monday when some group of boys trooped from Mushin to Aguda and started shooting gunshots sporadically in an apparent attempt to call out their rivals.
An eyewitness, Felix Ogwezi, told The Guardian: “We initially thought it was a robbery incident. But we later heard that they were cult members. We all had to run for our lives. We understand that the fight is between two cult groups but we appeal to the Lagos State government to deploy able combatant security operatives to these troubled spots and stop these unnecessary deaths over gang wars.
A source simply referred to as Ohammiri revealed that one person was killed in the violence before the police team of detectives arrived at the scene. “The men involved in the violence used guns and broken bottles as they attacked each other. The fight was between Mushin boys and Aguda boys. Aguda boys were allegedly fighting to establish dominance after Mushin boys invaded their territory.”
She added that the policemen drafted from the neighbourhood police stations could not control the gangs but the violence was later brought under control when SARS and RSS team arrived at the scene, by which time one person had been shot dead.
It was gathered that the hoodlums vandalised and looted a truck carrying crates of beers to one shop in the area.
Reacting to the incident, the Special Adviser, Information and Strategy to the council chairman, Lanre Oguntoyinbo, said the unrest, which occurred in the Pako area of Surulere, a boundary area between Coker/Aguda LCDA and Itire/Ikate LCDA, has been brought under control.
In the other development, it was gathered that the clash over who controls NURTW in Ijesha started on Sunday night between factional members of the transport union, leaving residents to panic and scamper for safety. The clash, according to a member of the NURTW, was orchestrated by one of the unit chairman, who aimed to overthrow the incumbent Ijesha branch chairman.
The PPRO, Elkana confirmed that two people were killed in the clash, which began on Sunday. According Elkana, on December 15, at about 11:41 a.m. police received a distress call that there was a gun shot at Pako, Aguda Canal. On getting to the scene, police found the body of one Alagodo ‘m’ 27 years old, a follower of one Eluku who is currently in prison over violent crimes.
“On December 16, at about 08:30 a.m. some hoodlums from Ijesha, in what looks like a revenge mission stormed Aguda in large numbers with cutlasses, bottles and stone and other dangerous weapons. The hoodlums destroyed about 22 shops and vandalised some vehicles. Some hoodlums from Aguda equally reacted. One of the hoodlums from Aguda known as Timileyin Odulana was injured by the hoodlums from Ijesha. He was rushed to Military Hospital, Yaba, where he was confirmed dead,” he said.
Guardian