Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City
No fewer than five persons, including a pregnant woman, were reportedly killed at Osholo village in Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State after a tipper ran into a crowd.
Two others were also alleged to have been killed in a mob action by some aggrieved villagers.
The incident, according to information available to THISDAY, occurred when the lorry driver who was coming from Ekperi in Etsako Central Local Government Area towards Weppa in Etsako East ran into the crowd, killing three persons, including a pregnant woman and injuring several others.
It was gathered that while the driver and his conductor were making efforts to carry the dead and the injured to a nearby hospital, some angry people from Osholo community came to the scene of the accident and set the tipper, the driver and the conductor ablaze.
Angered by the action of the Osholo community, it was further learnt that people from Weppa community invaded Osholo and set some houses ablaze but for the timely intervention of the law enforcement agents, there would have been more casualties
Confirming the report, the state Commissioner of Police, Chris Ejike, said five persons died in the incident, adding that as soon as the report got to the police, a team of police officers were immediately deployed on the area to forestall further aggression.
He also noted that investigation was ongoing on the matter but could not confirm the number of persons arrested.
But sources close to Osholo community however confirmed that several persons had been apprehended by the police who still mount a blockade in the area till now.
Meanwhile, the state government said it has expelled eight secondary school students over their alleged involvement in secret cult activities in various schools in the state.
The state Commissioner for Education, Gideon Obhakhan, disclosed this yesterday in an interview with journalists in Benin-city the state capital.
Obhakhan also stated that over 20 students suspected to be members of secret cult groups in different schools who are currently being investigated by the police had been suspended by the state government.
He pointed out that if those under investigation by the police are found to be culpable, they would be expelled from their various schools to serve as a deterrent to others.
The commissioner explained that the ongoing clampdown by the state government was aimed at checking the wave of secret cult activities now spreading across secondary and primary schools in the state.
He further dispelled the rumour making the rounds that the newly founded Edo State University, Iyhamo, is jointly owned by private/public partnership, stressing that the state has the full ownership of the multi million project.
