17th September, 2014
Paul Iyoghojie
A bloody clash between two rival cult groups at Ibaa Town in Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State, southsouth Nigeria, has left 10 people dead and property worth millions of naira destroyed.
This was disclosed by the police when the state new Commissioner of Police, CP Dan Bature, visited the troubled area to assess the situation and sympathise with the residents of the area.
The police added that the cult groups, named Icelanders and Greenlanders, also injured many residents of the area during the free for all.
The dead victims, according to the police, have been deposited in a mortuary in the state while the injured residents have been admitted to a hospital for treatment.
The police chief stated that some of the dead victims include two vigilante members and the Ibaa town crier. It was also claimed that five of the gangsters were arrested during the crisis which forced residents to flee their homes to avoid being killed.
According to police reports, the gangsters unleashed terror on the town with guns and other lethal weapons before the police arrived the scene to dislodge them and restore order.
The police claimed that a longstanding chieftancy tussle in the area and the lingering political differences among stakeholders triggered the mayhem.
During his condolence visit to Ibaa town to console the families of the victims, CP Bature said: “I sympatise with all of you ( residents) over the unfortunate incident. I am in your midst to inform you that the police in the Rivers State command under my control will continue to provide maximum security to ensure all residents of this state will continue to sleep with their two eyes closed every day.”
The police commissioner also appealed to them not to take the laws in their hands. He assured them that the police have launched a manhunt for the gangsters who committed the crime.