by Barely seven weeks after suspected terrorists killed 41 worshippers in Owo, the headquarters of Owo Local Council of Ondo State, a gang of bandits have re-launched an attack on the community.
The Guardian learnt that the gunmen stormed Craneburg Construction Company on Wednesday, evening at about 9:30p.m., attacking the night guards and destroying some of the company’s properties.
The victims are: Rifum Lawrence, 50 and Abraham Opara, 45 years, both are night guards in the company located at Folahanmi Junction, Owo, sustaining injuries from the attack.
In a commando style, the gunmen reportedly shot sporadically into the air and damaged the windscreen of the trailers at the construction site and thereafter, used dynamite also to attack the place.
There were expended bullets and cannisters littering the scene, while holes as a result of the heavy attack are visible on the bullet-riddled buildings.
It was the second attack on the hometown of the state governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, who had vowed to take drastic measures against the men of the underworld.
For the record, the terrorists swooped on worshippers of St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, Owaluwa, Owo, and killed 41 people on June 5, 2022, leaving scores injured.
Recall that a security man was killed when an expatriate was kidnapped at the same site three months ago, while the victims in the last attack were rushed to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Owo, for treatment.
The Commander of the Ondo State Security Network Agency (Amotekun Corps), Akogun Adetunji Adeleye, who confirmed the attack, said: “I am just leaving the scene now, where I went to assess the situation. I realised that the two security men on ground were injured as the attackers shot into the air.
“They got the windscreen of the caterpillar of the construction company damaged and the injured men have been receiving treatment at a nearby hospital.”
Adeleye, who doubles as the Special Adviser to the Ondo State Governor on Security Matters, allayed the fears of the people, saying, “by the grace of God, the situation is under control and I urge everyone to go about their normal businesses.”
Recounting his ordeal, the Chief Security Officer of the company, Aladeselu Olatubosun, noted that the attack would have been more devastating if not for the rain on Wednesday night.
The state’s Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Funmilayo Odunlami, in a statement yesterday, said the Command had commenced investigation into the incident, urging residents to cooperate with the police.
Odunlami disclosed that an Anti Bomb Squad confirmed that an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was used to bust a tractor tyre at the scene of the crime.
“The Command is using this medium to warn those who do not know the real situation of things not to cause unnecessary panic by peddling unconfirmed stories relating to the incident,” she said.
Source: The Guardian
