Exclusive: Panic in Ibadan community as armed robbers kill four, injure others

Palpable anxiety has gripped the residents of Alade-Owo  Estate community via Omi-Adio, in Ido Local Government Area of Oyo state as a gang of suspected armed robbers, last Friday, killed four persons while trying to escape from the scene of an operation.

Mega Icon Magazine reliably gathered that four persons, including a commercial motorcycle rider, were killed by the gunmen who shot indiscriminately while escaping from the community.

The incident, according to sources, occurred at about 7:00 pm last Friday.

The gunmen, numbering three were said to be fleeing after an operation and shot at the victims while trying to clear their way towards the linked tarred road to the community.

Residents, who spoke on condition of anonymity, disclosed that the robbers who stormed the community with a bike had earlier attacked the residence of a popular POS operator in the area simply identified as ‘Alfa’ and carted away an unspecified amount of money.

One of the residents continued, “ after leaving Alfa’s house, they sighted a young man who was innocently making calls without knowing that they were armed robbers, but they taught he was calling the police or OPC, so they shot him.

“On getting to the transformer junction, one of the commercial motorcyclists had alerted people and some youths were trying to block the entrance gate to stop the robbers from escaping through the main road, so it seems this action aggravated their anger and they started shooting sporadically, people were running for safety, leaving their shops opened, while those that ran into them were shot dead.

“They were not looking at anybody. They were just shooting and later left unchallenged.

“ As we speak now, some people are still receiving treatment at the hospital. By the time the security operatives, including the police, OPC, and Amotekun got to the scene, the robbers had fled.

“Up till now, we are yet to recover from Friday’s tension, we are still much afraid. We are appealing to the state government to deploy security personnel to protect our lives and property”, the source urged.

Efforts made to reach the Chairman, Alade-Owo/Abanla Community Development Association for comments were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.

No doubt, the invasion by these dreaded armed robbers has sent shock waves across the area.

Our reporter who visited the community observed that residents now live in fear of being terrorized by the gang as they are battling to unravel the mystery behind the ugly incident that befell them.

They have been anxious, returning home early and locking their doors by 8:30 p.m.

Mega Icon Magazine also observed some bloodstains in the gutter. The community is now being patrolled by a police team.