Police arrest 23 suspected cultists, recover guns

The police in Bayelsa State have arrested 23 suspected cultists and recovered firearms, ammunition and suspected illicit drugs following a wave of cult-related violence in Yenagoa that left four people dead, the police have said.

The Commissioner of Police, Ajao Adewale, disclosed this in a statement shared on the command’s Facebook page on Saturday, detailing a series of intelligence-led operations conducted between 23 September and 8 October.

Mr Adewale said rival cult groups had carried out attacks and reprisals in several communities and neighbourhoods in Yenagoa, including Igbogene, Onopa, Ovom, Agudama, Amarata, Swali and Akenfa. Some of the attacks resulted in fatalities and life-threatening injuries, he said.

The arrests involved suspects accused of cultism, attempted murder, unlawful possession of firearms and breach of public peace.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported that the commissioner of police ordered a crackdown on cultists, their financiers and collaborators.

How the arrests were made

The police said operatives of the Anti-Cultism Unit arrested two suspects during coordinated operations between 23 September and 5 October.

A suspect, identified as Tarimie James, 24, was arrested near St Anglican Church in Ovom community. The police said he admitted being a member of the Icelanders confraternity and that a locally fabricated Beretta pistol was recovered from him. The command said he was remanded pending trial.

Another suspect, Ezeikiel Joel, 24, from Igbogene community, was arrested with an automatic pump-action gun, other weapons and a drum allegedly used during cult meetings. The police said he confessed to belonging to the Ku Klux Klan confraternity.

On 5 October, operatives of the command’s Violent Crime Response Unit arrested five other suspects in connection with attacks and reprisals that allegedly caused life-threatening injuries in some of the affected communities.

The suspects were identified as Zaidamun Paul, Anthony Okorie, Godsgift Angel, Richman Kudi and Victor Kelsy. The police said a Beretta pistol, axes, cutlasses and knives were recovered during the operation.

The command also reported recovering a locally made revolver pistol and three rounds of live 9mm ammunition at Ugbogene on 6 October.

According to the police, the weapon was abandoned by a suspect who fled into a nearby swamp after sighting operatives. The command said it was working to arrest him.

Eight more suspects arrested

Police said a joint operation on 7 and 8 October led to the arrest of eight additional suspects in Akenfa, Igbogene, and Swali communities.

READ ALSO: Police commissioner in Bayelsa orders crackdown on cult groups

One of them, identified as Baratua-Pre Bara, 30, was arrested in Akenfa. The police said he confessed to being the number two leader of the Icelanders confraternity in Yenagoa and was scheduled to be arraigned on 12 October.

At Igbogene Motor Park, operatives arrested Funkuro Bereh, 25, and Kelvin Adamu, 28. The command said both men admitted belonging to the Bobos confraternity. It said Mr Adamu was on remand awaiting trial, while Mr Bereh was expected to be arraigned in court.

Four other suspects were arrested in Swali, including Vincent Ikiye, 20; Benjamin Akeno, 26; Esuaye Ikeclear, 30; and Gift Torie, 23. The police identified them as alleged members of the Bobos confraternity.

The police also arrested the eighth suspect, Job Simon, 32, a businessman from Gbarain in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa. The police said he admitted belonging to the same confraternity and was scheduled to be charged to court on 12 October.

The command said the arrests followed a joint raid operation, adding that community youths handed one of the suspects over to the police.

In its summary of the operations, the command listed firearms, ammunition and other items allegedly recovered from the suspects.

The police listed recovered items to include three locally made revolver pistols, nine live rounds of 9mm ammunition, 20 cartridges, five cutlasses, two battle axes, a drum, two cans of nitrous oxide, 17 bottles of a substance identified as codeine and a bag of dried leaves suspected to be cannabis.