No fewer than four people were feared injured, yesterday, when some traders at the Atikankan area of Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, attacked operatives of state Amotekun Corps.
Sources said trouble started when the Amotekun Corps attempted to effect the government’s order to relocate the traders from the Atikankan area which was alleged to become a haven for criminal activities.
The leadership of Ado Local Government Area was said to have engaged the services of Amotekun Corps to effect the movement of traders along the road in Oja’ba, Oja Bisi and Atikankan Market.
A source said: “Some traders at Atikankan resisted the attack, ambushed Amotekun Corps operatives and unleashed mayhem on the security agents with dangerous weapons.”
Weapons, including as guns, cutlasses and daggers were alleged to have been used by the traders to inflict injuries on the operatives while about three Amotekun patrol vans were said to have been vandalised.
“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. It’s a hideout for criminals where they buy and sell stolen items, among other illicit activities. Government asked them to relocate to another place provided for them, but they have refused to leave the place.
“So the Amotekun people came today to enforce the government’s relocation order when hoodlums attacked them with dangerous weapons. They injured the Amotekun 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 the Atikankan area of Ado Ekiti. The command immediately deployed operatives to the scene to maintain peace and forestall further damage,” he said.