On Sunday, enraged youths set fire to a police station in Agenebode, the administrative center of Etsako East local government area in Edo State, in response to rising allegations of kidnappings and killings by suspected criminals in the region.
According to report by TRIBUNE, the frustrated youths accused the police of colluding with the alleged kidnappers.
Residents claimed that these criminals were abducting individuals and murdering them, possibly for organ harvesting.
The incident that sparked the violence, according to a local resident, involved the case of a young boy who had been kidnapped weeks earlier. Despite a ransom being paid, he was never released.
Reports indicate that the community’s youths managed to trace the kidnapper’s phone, leading to an arrest. This suspect was handed over to the police, and further investigation allegedly connected him to the leader of the criminal gang in the area.
Dissatisfied with the police’s response, the local youths stormed the police station, seizing the suspect, who eventually guided them to the hideout of the kidnappers. There, he reportedly confessed to the youths that multiple kidnapping victims had been murdered and buried in shallow graves after their body parts were harvested.
In their fury, the youths unearthed the decomposing body of the young victim from the compound of the fleeing gang leader, and in the process, discovered several additional bones believed to belong to other victims.
Outraged, the youths set fire to the leader’s house, razed nearby business establishments, and ultimately attacked the police station, setting it ablaze.
One of the youths declared, “Enough is enough! This must stop. The police kill our children and still extort money from us. These kidnappers demand ransoms of N2.5 million or even N3 million, only to murder the victims anyway.”
When approached for comment, Council Chairperson Mrs. Benedicta Atoh was reportedly too stunned to respond, according to one of her aides.
In response to the chaos, Assistant Inspector General of Police Arungwa Udo and State Commissioner of Police Nemi Edwin-Iwo arrived at the scene to restore order and assess the situation.
Meanwhile, the Police Public Relations Officer for the Edo State Command, Moses Yamu, replied via text message that he would get back as soon as possible.
