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Wednesday, February 19, 2025
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Police arrests 32 youths link to Ondo land clashes

Fawzi Kehinde

In a swift response to the violent clash sparked by a long-standing land dispute, the Ondo Police Command has arrested 32 youths suspected to be linked to the clashes which claimed two lives amongs the three warring communities of Owake, Ebo, and Oka Odo.

The arrests made by the police, over 24 hours after the clash, were said to be part of efforts by the police to restore peace and harmony to the three warring communities.

The incident that has crippled commercial activities in the communities began when youths from Oka Odo, out on a hunting expedition, were reportedly attacked in the Ebo community, a development that led to a retaliatory strike by Owake residents despite the latter not being directly involved in the land dispute.

 

According to the Commissioner of Police, CP Wilfred Afolabi, the conflict erupted when youths from Oka Odo, on a hunting expedition in the Ebo community, were attacked. In retaliation, residents from Owake mistakenly targeted Oka Odo, not directly involved in the ongoing legal battle over land rights between Ebo and Owake.

 

“From what we gathered, the matter is still in court and no signal was given, what we heard was that youths from Oka Odo came to Ebo community on a Hunting Expedition and were attacked and on the basis of that, in form of retaliation the Owake people took laws into their hands and attacked the Oka Odo community who were not in any way involved in the crisis.”, ” the Commissioner stated while at the scene of the incidents.

 

The police action followed swiftly, with tactical teams deployed to the area, leading to the arrests. “So far so good we have deployed our tactical teams to this community and 32 suspects have been arrested and they are presently in our custody,” the Commissioner added. He noted the arrests were due to a “matter of mistakes of identity,” clarifying that Oka Odo has not been a direct party to the land dispute.

 

In efforts to prevent future outbreaks, the police are planning community safety partnerships.

 

“We are going back to our drawing board to work out modalities on how to address this security challenge we are having now,” said the Commissioner.

 

He emphasized the importance of community involvement in maintaining peace, stating, “We need to reach out to members of the community, have talks with them and try to let them know that peace is priceless.”

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