Police restore calm in Owode Onirin, declare land grabber wanted over deadly clash

…3 killed, Police Inspector battles for life in hospital

…Four policemen arrested for illegal duty with suspect

…Balogun Market fight not ethnic clash — Police

By Efe Onodjae

The Lagos State Police Command has restored calm in Owode Onirin, Lagos, after a bloody clash between traders and suspected land grabbers left three persons dead and a police inspector critically injured.

The Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Jimoh, personally led a combined team of operatives drawn from the Operations Department, Police Mobile Force, Rapid Response Squad, Tactical units and the State CID to the troubled axis on Wednesday.

The intervention brought an end to the violence, cleared barricades on major roads, and reopened the market area to commercial activities.

However, police authorities declared one Abiodun Ariori, CEO of Prosperous Ariori Golden Venture Limited, wanted over his alleged role in the deadly violence. According to investigators, preliminary findings linked him to the mayhem, but efforts to arrest him have so far proved abortive as he is believed to have gone into hiding.

The Command, in a statement signed by its spokesperson, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, urged members of the public with useful information on Ariori’s whereabouts to report to the nearest police station or call designated emergency numbers.

Hundeyin also disclosed that four policemen allegedly brought in from outside Lagos by the wanted suspect were arrested for engaging in illegal duty. They are currently undergoing orderly room trial at the Command Headquarters.

On the casualties, Police said three victims died of injuries sustained during the clash, while a Police Inspector remains on danger list in hospital.

Meanwhile, the Command also moved swiftly to quell a separate disturbance in Balogun Market, Lagos Island, following a fight between hoodlums. Police clarified that the fracas was not a tribal clash as rumoured.

According to the statement, a trader identified as Ebuka Adindu from Abia State allegedly stabbed one Sodiq Ibrahim from Kogi State to death during a fight, before stabbing himself in the shoulder. He was rescued unconscious, arrested, and is currently under treatment under police guard.
“No innocent life was lost, and no goods or properties of traders were destroyed. The fight was strictly between hoodlums and miscreants around Balogun Market. Normalcy has been fully restored,” Hundeyin stated.

The Commissioner of Police urged Lagosians to disregard unfounded rumours of ethnic violence, remain law-abiding, and cooperate with the police to sustain peace across the state.

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