The Osun State Police Command has arrested seven suspects over alleged armed robbery, attempted murder, and cult-related clashes in Ile-Ife and Iree, recovering two stolen motorcycles.
Police spokesperson DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, in a statement on Thursday, said one of the suspects, 23-year-old Johnson Olagoke, allegedly lured two commercial motorcyclists to a secondary school in Ile-Ife in August, where he and accomplices beat them unconscious before carting away their motorcycles, cash, and phones.
The first incident occurred on August 16, when a victim was dispossessed of his motorcycle, ₦17,850, a Techno phone, and a handbag. Two days later, another rider was struck from behind and robbed of his motorcycle, a Techno Spark 9F, and ₦10,650. Both victims were left unconscious.
“Through intelligence-led operations, operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit arrested the suspect and recovered two motorcycles. He is assisting with information to track other gang members,” Ojelabi said.
In a separate operation, police arrested six suspected cultists on September 8 and 9 following a bloody clash at a higher institution in Iree that left two students hospitalised. The suspects — Oluwadamilare Temitope (23), Ayodeji John (24), Adepoju Adesoji (27), Yusuf Abeeb (24), Fatai Quadri (24), and Lateef Abiodun (23) — were linked to the Buccaneers confraternity and rival groups.
Read Also;
Kebbi Police Arrest Six Over ₦109.5m Gold Theft, Correctional Officer Implicated
INEC, Police Warn Parties Against Early Campaigns Ahead of 2027 Elections
The command said all suspects will be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.
Between 2020 and 2025, at least 1,686 deaths in Nigeria have been tied to cult clashes, with 55 recorded in Osun State. Ile-Ife, home to Obafemi Awolowo University, has also seen a rise in violent robberies targeting off-campus hostels in Moremi Estate, Modomo, and Mayfair.
