The Ogun State Police Command has arrested at least five persons in connection with the death of a fisherman named Segun Sikiru in the Iwopin town of the Ijebu-Ode Local Government Area.
PUNCH Metro learnt from the state police command on Monday that the incident occurred when the suspects allegedly assaulted the victim with a bamboo stick and discarded his body in a lagoon in the community.
The five suspects, all members of the community —Saheed Mureni, Afeez Mureni, Saheed Taidi, Thompson Samuel, and Ogoji Olorunwa— were apprehended by operatives of the Abigi Police Division on Sunday.
The command’s spokesperson, Omolola Odutola, exclusively informed our correspondent that the suspects were arrested after the deceased’s family members reported the incident.
The deceased and his two sons left their home in the community to go fishing when they noticed suspicious activities at their fish trap, also known as Iki.
While trying to get a closer look at the fish trap, PUNCH Metro gathered that the suspects were spotted stealing from Sikiru’s fish trap.
Upon seeing the deceased and his son, our correspondent learnt that the suspects allegedly attacked the deceased with a bamboo stick, striking him in the chest while the two sons managed to escape the assault.
Odutola said, “When the deceased spotted them at his fish trap, he tried to raise the alarm and draw the attention of people in the area to what was happening. However, the suspects allegedly attacked him, striking him in the chest with a bamboo stick. Once they realised he had lost consciousness, they reportedly threw him into the lagoon.
“The body has been recovered and taken to a mortuary in Ijebu-Ode. The five suspects involved in the incident have been arrested, and an investigation is underway.”
PUNCH Metro reported last July that at least two members of a seven-person criminal gang, Chukwuma Bartholomew and Igwe Monday, were arrested for the alleged murder of 71-year-old farmer Adekunle Ifelaja in the Ijebu-Igbo area of Ogun State.
The suspects were linked to a series of kidnappings and murders in Ijebu-Igbo before being arrested at their hideouts in Ijebu on June 28, 2024, following months of intelligence gathering and tracking by the state police command.
