Schools, hospitals shut as herdsmen attack Ogun communities, kill two

Published February 12, 2021

Suspected Fulani herdsmen, on Thursday, attacked Owode-Ketu and Ijoun villages in the Yewa-North Local Government Area of Ogun State and reportedly killed two persons.

Our correspondent gathered that the victims, Isiaka Apesin and Oguntosin Adebayo, were killed on their way to their farms by the herdsmen, who laid an ambush for them.

Eyewitnesses said after killing the farmers, the herdsmen went into the two villages and started shooting indiscriminately and scaring away residents.

According to the source, the killer herdsmen ran into the bush after perpetrating the act.

It was gathered that when the day broke, there was tension in the affected villages, a development that made schools and hospitals in the villages to shut down abruptly.

It was gathered that the incident prompted the closure of schools, hospitals and other businesses as villagers scampered for safety after the killings and the indiscriminate shooting by the assailants.

The Baale of Owode-Ketu, Rev. Sanya Fabuyi, who confirmed the incident, stated that the herdsmen came with sophisticated weapons.

Fabuyi said the villagers were helpless as the herdsmen shot indiscriminately and caused panic in the area.

The youth leader of the community, Mr Sina Olaleye, said the herdsmen, who put on bulletproof vests, immediately fled into the forest after the attack.

He said, “The herdsmen were more than 100 and some of them were putting on bulletproof vests. They are still in the forest now and the police are combing the forest.

“All schools and businesses have been shut down and our people are indoors for fear of being attacked.”

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the incident.

Meanwhile, Governor Dapo Abiodun, on Thursday, warned to perpetrators of violence in Owode-Ketu, Eggua, Igan-Alade and Igbogila areas of the state.

The governor said his administration would leave no stone unturned in curtailing the activities of brigands in the state.

The governor said this in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Kunle Somorin.

“Ogun cannot be defined by crimes and criminalities. Ogun does not have any haven – safe or unsafe – for killers, bandits, insurgents or cultists. We shall spare no action, including ruthless ones, to bring peace, public order into every hamlet, town and city in the Gateway State,” he stated.