Inspector-General Of Police Sets Up Panel To Probe Akure Explosion

The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has set up a Special Investigation Team to unravel the cause of the explosion that occurred at Ogbese near Akure, the Ondo State capital early Saturday.

The team, which is headed by Maikudi Shehu, Commissioner of Police in charge of the Explosive Ordinance Disposal Unit, Force Headquarters, Abuja, has as members, police officers from the Police Bomb Disposal Squad, a specialised arm of the police that oversees explosives and ordinance operations of the Force.

The blast was reportedly caused by exploding dynamites which destroyed over 50 houses and injured over 20 persons, including some policemen who were accompanying it to a quarry in Edo State.

While the police in Ondo State attributed the incident to an explosion from the dynamites, a professor of Geophysics at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Adepelumi Adekunle, contradicted their findings, saying a giant rock from space known as meteor impacted the location

But a statement in Abuja on Monday, by the force spokesman, Frank Mba, said the police investigation team would work jointly with experts from the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency.

It noted, “The NGSA Agency has a state-of-the-art laboratory with the capacity and expertise to carry out a wide range of geo-scientific examinations including Laboratory/Forensic Examinations, Geochemical Analysis of Rocks, Minerals, Water, Sewage, Soil Samples and Site Investigations amongst others.

“The IG hopes that with the involvement of NGSA, the quality and integrity of investigations into the explosion will be greatly enhanced.”

Adamu cautioned residents not to tamper with the scene of the incident as investigations continues.

He also sympathised with the government and people of Ondo State particularly victims, who sustained injuries or lost their property to the explosion.