The Ondo State Police command has denied rumours that the command has arrested suspected terrorists, who attacked St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo state.
The clarification was made following rumours flying town on Thursday evening that the perpetrators of the terror attack were nabbed by the combined team of the Nigerian Army, Amotekun Corps and other security agents.
A viral video had circulated online indicating that the perpetrators of the terror attack had been arrested.
The video showed residents of Owo town as they gathered in the palace of the Olowo, Oba Ajibade Ogunoye, to confirm the news of the purported arrest of the suspects on Thursday evening.
Oba Ogunoye, who addressed the crowd in Owo dialect, said he only heard about the news just the way the residents heard it and asked them to remain calm.
“It was only a rumour. Youths besieged the palace in their thousands when the rumour broke out, but it was discovered to be a false alarm,” a source in the palace who pleaded to be anonymous, disclosed.
“Kabiyesi was only trying to hail their doggedness as he told them that, ‘I heard the rumour like you too’, admonishing them to be patient to authenticate it.
“But it was later discovered that the story was about a group arrested along Owo/Benin boundary in possession of dangerous weapon,” the source told newsmen.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in Ondo State, SP Funmilayo Odunlami, denied the rumour, saying she could not confirm the arrest of the attackers.
“I can not confirm anything like that. There is no story like that in the state,” the PPRO told News Agency of Nigeria.
Also, a source from Nigeria Army, 32 Artillery Bridgade, Akure, said the perpetrators were not arrested.
“It is a rumour, those arrested are those engaged in Indian hemp business. They are about three or so, they were arrested somewhere around Owo forest,” the source told NAN.
