Many Injured As Traders And Amotekun Operatives Clash In Ekiti

Four people were hurt in an attack on Ekiti State Amotekun Corps personnel by some traders on May 11 in the Ado Ekiti neighborhood of Atikankan.

Members of the security agency are reportedly among the injured.

According to reports, unrest started when the Amotekun Corps tried to carry out a government directive to transfer traders from the Atikankan region to the marketplaces along the Agric Olope Market in the capital city.

A source who spoke to Punch, said that the leadership of Ado Local Government Area had engaged the services of Amotekun Corps to effect the movement of traders along the road in Oja’ba, Oja Bisi and Atikankan Market, said, “Some traders at Atikankan resisted the attack, ambushed Amotekun Corps operatives and unleashed mayhem on the security agents with dangerous weapons”.

He alleged that weapons such as guns, cutlasses and daggers were used by the traders and in the process allegedly injured the operatives and vandalized about three Amotekun patrol vans.

He said, “These people in the Atikankan area have been constituting a serious nuisance and security threat to the state in the last few years with the kind of criminal activities happening on a daily basis.

“This is a place where you go and see people hawking cannabis in broad daylight, used as criminal hideouts and selling and buying of stolen items, among other illicit activities. The government asked them to relocate to another place provided for them, but they were adamant and insisted they won’t leave the place.

“They said nobody can make them vacate the place, you can see the problem in our hands. The Amotekun people were there today (Thursday) to effect the directives of the government on the relocation when they were attacked with dangerous weapons.

“They injured the operatives and destroyed their patrol vehicles. I heard one person died in the fracas but I can’t confirm that at the moment,” the source said.

The Police Public Relations Officer for Ekiti State Command, Sunday Abutu, who confirmed the clash, said that four suspects had been arrested so far in connection with the incident.

Abutu, who said normalcy had been restored to the area, said the Commissioner of Police, Dare Ogundare, had ordered a discreet investigation into the incident to ensure that the perpetrators were brought to book.

He said, “The command received a distress call that there was a clash between Amotekun operatives and a group of irate youths in Atikankan area of Ado Ekiti. The command immediately deployed operatives to the scene to maintain peace and forestall further damage.

“Upon reaching the scene, it was discovered that two persons were seriously injured and rushed to the hospital,” he said.