Four persons have lost their lives in clashes involving two rival cult groups in the Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.
PUNCH Metro gathered that as of Sunday morning, a series of violent incidents that erupted between the rival cult groups resulted in the death of two individuals in the Okogbe area of Otovwodo while the other two lost their lives near Iwhreko and Ogor Park.
Our correspondent learnt that the conflicts resulting in the death of the four yet-to-be-identified victims said to be members of the Aye and Bagger confraternities respectively, arose over debt recovery.
The dispute between the group reportedly erupted following the sale of drugs on credit to one of the victims, said to be a member of a rival cult.
Tension eventually arose last Thursday when the seller sought to recover the owed money as the debtor, belonging to one of the cult groups, was confronted by the victim demanding repayment.
The demand for the payment reportedly degenerated into a violent altercation between the duo where the victim was severely assaulted.
Witnesses told our correspondent that the victim retaliated by attacking his debtor with a weapon in a separate encounter, sparking further violence between the two groups and escalating to fatal confrontations within the Ughelli metropolis over the weekend.
A senior security official from the state police command, while speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the deaths to PUNCH Metro.
The security source stated that one of the cult leaders had already engaged with law enforcement agents to address the escalating tensions and seek a resolution.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer for the Delta State Command, SP Edafe Bright, told PUNCH Metro on Tuesday that “even though the report of the incident had reached the command, the reported deaths could not be confirmed until we see the corpses.”
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