Two Killed As Lagos Rival Cult Groups Clash

Suspected cultists said to be avenging the killing of their colleague by a rival group on Thursday, March 16, hacked one Moses aka Loworo to death on Tapa Street in the Bariga area of Lagos State.

PUNCH Metro gathered that some members of a cult group had killed a rival cult member identified simply as Ayo in a community in Shomolu area of the state earlier that day.

A source, who did not want his name in print because of the sensitive nature of the matter, told our correspondent on Sunday that in a bid to avenge Ayo’s death, his colleagues trailed his suspected killers to Bariga where they launched a reprisal on Moses.

He said, “The problem started in the morning when Ayo was attacked and killed in his area in Shomolu. He was killed at about 11am while his left hand was cut off and taken away by the cultist.

“Later in the evening, members of a cult group came to avenge the death of their colleague. When they came into the community, they were looking for members of their rival group and that was how they saw Moses.

“At that point, Moses was standing alone close to a kiosk on Tapa Street and was not aware of the presence of the cultists. Suddenly, their vehicle moved close to him and four guys came out and surrounded him. That was when one of them pulled a gun and shot him three times. After shooting him, he wanted to escape but he fell. Then they inflicted machete cuts on him.

“When other members of his group heard what happened, they rushed down to the spot and found his body in the drainage where it was dumped. They also attempted to chase those who attacked him but they did not see any of them.”

The source added that the incident caused apprehension in the area as business owners locked their shops.

“Shortly after the incident, people who have shops in the area quickly closed for the day and rushed home. Most of them did not open the following day (Friday) because of the incident. They were also scared that his death could lead to a breakdown of law and looting of their shops by louts,” he added.

The source said the Bariga Divisional Police Officer later visited the scene of the incident and took the corpse to the mortuary.

When contacted on Sunday, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, said he was not aware of the incident.