A 37-year-old suspected cultist, Azeez Ajayi, has been arrested by the police for allegedly wielding two Barreta pistols during a victory party by members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers in the Ijora area of Lagos State.
It was learnt that Ajayi was arrested alongside Omoyibo Ejovwoke, 26, and three rounds of live ammunition were recovered from them.
The suspects were apprehended by the operatives of the Lagos State Anti-Cultism Unit after footage of them wielding the weapons was circulated on the Internet.
Ajayi, a member of the NURTW, was said to have wielded the weapons at the Ijora 7up area where he and other members of the union where celebrating the victory of Alhaji Tajudeen Baruwa, at the NURTW presidential election in Abuja.
It was gathered that a clash took place between rival members of the union during the party, which claimed one life and left many others injured.
According to Ajayi, he was in possession of the guns to protect himself.
He said, “The guns have been with me for six months now, but I don’t use them for anything. I am not a cultist; the mistake I made was that I didn’t take the guns to the police. I just kept them in case a fight breaks out in my area; they serve as a form of protection for me.
“I am a member of the NURTW; we have two factions of the union in Lagos now, but I belong to the Baruwa caucus. Our branch chairman is Okere.
We organised the party to celebrate the newly-elected President of the NURTW, Alhaji Baruwa, although we didn’t get any approval from the police and the local government, because we didn’t envisage that it would turn bloody.
“During the party, members of the other faction came for us and that was how the clash started. One person was killed and several others sustained injuries.”
When contacted, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Bala Elkana, said, “The Commissioner of Police, Muazu Zubairu, has directed the Divisional Police Officer in the area and the Anti-Cultism Unit to go after all the members who appeared on the video, because the command will not tolerate any act of hooliganism in the state.”