The Ogun State Police Command said it had arrested a masquerader for allegedly violating the federal and state governments’ directives on social distancing and public gatherings, as part of an effort to curtail the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the state.

The masquerader was said to have been arrested after he allegedly confronted some police officers and threatened to deal with them, if they tried to disperse his followers.

The Ogun State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, revealed this on Monday, march 30th, 2020.

The PPRO said the masquerader was nabbed on Sunday, March 29th in the Ijeja axis of Abeokuta, after a complaint by members of the public that some individuals had gathered in their hundreds in the neighbourhood.

Oyeyemi added that the purpose of the gathering was to celebrate the traditional masquerader festival in the community.

He said the residents were fearful that the gathering would result to a massive spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the community.

Oyeyemi stated,

Upon the report, policemen from the Ibara Division moved to the area and warned the people to disperse, but the masquerader confronted the policemen and threatened to deal with them if they insisted on dispersing his followers.

The masquerader was subsequently arrested and taken to the station, where he was warned to be law-abiding before he was released to a reliable surety.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.