Hammed Shittu in Ilorin
One suspected cultist popularly known as ‘Tiny’ was last Saturday allegedly shot dead in Ilorin in a gun duel with some police officers for allegedly terrorising his neighbours with gun.
However, Hon Abdulganiyu Abdulquadri, media aide of the former Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, was quick to distance the incident from the programme of eighth year memorial prayer for late Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki, which successfully took place some meters away last Saturday.
Abdulquadri in a statement issued in Ilorin yesterday said “Among others, the incident has nothing to do with the prayers. To avoid any misrepresentation of facts, we urge all journalists interested in publishing the facts to seek clarifications from the police and other security agencies as investigation into the matter is said to have commenced.”
THISDAY checks revealed that the incident coincidentally occurred at a spacious mechanic shop around Commissioner way in GRA, Ilorin, which was a stone throw to Iloffa residence of the Sarakis where the prayers for eighth year remembrance of late Saraki was taking place.
The suspected cultist, apparently tipsy, who came to drink in one of the ‘joints’ in the area, was said to be shooting a pump action rifle into the air, causing panic in the area.
The onlookers reportedly cautioned him but he was unperturbed, saying that he was testing his newly bought rifle, which he described as ‘one-in-town’.
It was, however, learnt that the fear that the deadly attitude might wreak havoc on the people in the area prompted some few police officers, who were watching the incident some meters away, to rescue the situation.
The suspected criminal was later found to be on the wanted list of the police for allegedly committing many atrocities in the state capital.
The suspected cultist reportedly fired some gun shots at the approaching team of police officers in a vehicle but he was shot dead in an exchange of gun shots with the police.
When contacted, the Spokesperson of Kwara State Police Command, Ajayi Okasanmi, confirmed the incident, but said he has not been officially briefed.
He said: “I heard about the incident, but I have not been officially briefed.”
