Some policemen have allegedly killed a woman, identified as Mrs. Bolatito Balogun, and displaced a handful of people after they opened fire on protesting women in Oro-Ago community in the Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State.
Punch gathered on Sunday, June 14, 2015 that the unidentified policemen were the four-man police team sent from the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Abuja, to investigate the immediate and remote causes of the clashes between Fulani herdsmen, popularly called the Bororos, and the indigenes of the community.
According to the president of Oro-Ago Development Union, Chief Richard Olushola, the fully armed policemen led by an inspector, identified simply as Femi, stormed the community around 7am on Friday, June 12, 2015 in a Toyota Hummer bus, marked MA 892 EKY, and two Hilux patrol vans.
He said, “The action of the policemen was contrary to information available to the monarch of the community, Oba Johnson Dada, that the policemen were in the community on a peace mission and to visit places where previous clashes had occurred.
“Sadly, the purported peace mission turned bloody as the police released live bullets on women, who were peacefully protesting the arrests of their men.
“In the ensuing confusion, Mrs. Bolatito Balogun was killed, while one Mrs. Tope Ologemo was injured and rushed to the hospital.
“The ugly incident led to our people running helter-skelter and scampering for safety. The police went away with at least five of our men. Some other people are still missing after the incident and their whereabouts still unknown.
“The names of the five we can identify are Oladele Ponle, Chief Asanlu Salawu, Karimu Aremu, Rasaki Illa and Tunde Abolaji.”
Olushola further revealed that residents of the community have been living in fear since the encounter adding that the Fulani herdsmen had allegedly been having a field day since the incident as their cattle mercilessly destroyed farmlands of the indigenes.
Confirming the incident, the state police spokesperson, Mr. Ajayi Okesanmi, said an investigation is ongoing over the clashes between the Bororos and the community members.
While confirming the death of Balogun, Okesanmi said an autopsy result would disclose what actually killed.
He said, “The case was previously being investigated by the Kwara State Police Command. But the Force CID requested that the matter be transferred to Abuja for further investigation and we did that. Since they have taken over the case from us, they have every authority to go anywhere in this country to get to the root of the entire matter.”
