THE Police in Ogun State have arrested eight members of a cult group, Black Axe Confraternity, who allegedly shot a 16-year-old boy, during a procession in honour of a deceased member.
The suspects were said to have also dispossessed the victim, Onome Iduru, of his phone after he was shot and, thereafter, “unleashed terror on the community.”
The victim, the Police said, had been taken to Oladayo Hospital in the area for medical attention.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, who disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, gave the names of the arrested suspects to include: Olatunji Opeyemi, 26; Ayuba Oduola, 25; Sobowale Abiodun, 28; Sobowale Sunday, 25; Adelowo Olalekan, 32; Kareem Lanre, 21; Emmanuel Adebisi, 21; and Tobiloba Wasiu, 20.
The PPRO said, “The cultists were arrested following a report lodged at the Ogijo Police Station, where the 16-year-old boy was rushed to after he was shot in the stomach by the cultists, who were in a procession in honour of their departed member.
“The cultists, after shooting the victim, dispossessed him of his phone and unleashed terror on the community.”
Oyeyemi noted that upon the report, the DPO Ogijo Division, CSP Muhammed Suleiman, led his men to the scene, where eight members of the violent group were arrested after serious encounter with the policemen.
“A banner designed with the group’s insignia to announce the death of their member was recovered from them, while the injured victim was taken to the Oladayo Hospital for medical attention,” he added.
He said the Commissioner of Police, Edward Ajogun, had ordered the transfer of the suspects to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for further investigation, noting, “The commissioner, therefore, warns that any group or individual, who engage in any activity capable of undermining the peace of the state will be dealt with in a very decisive manner.
“He appealed to parents to warn their children not to belong to any unlawful society as the results may be catastrophic.”
