Residents of Arimogija town in the Ose Local Government Area (L.G.A.) of Ondo State have started fleeing the town, due to fear of attacks by suspected herdsmen.

The residents expressed grief that some men, suspected to be Fulani herdsmen, killed three persons on their farms in the community during the week. They added that the government had not done anything to contain the criminal activities of the bandits.

They also claimed that a helicopter flew over a forest in the community and dropped some weapons for the herdsmen.

They said they reported the matter to the police, but the police did not take any action on the issue.

A resident of the community, who spoke to Flavision on condition of anonymity, said that residents had been fleeing for fear of their lives, adding that some of them had begun to relocate to other places, following the Fulani herdsmen’s attacks.

The resident said,

The Fulani herdsmen have killed three people in the community in one week. They killed a rice farmer, Jacob Odushe and his son, Adura this week. They killed another boy, Victor Ejeh. The boy’s corpse was found in the bush after a week after he was declared missing. The cuts on his body showed that he was killed by the bandits.

We appeal to the state government to come to our aid. We need serious presence of security agencies in our community. We don’t want to take the law into our hands.

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu’s Special Adviser on Security Matters, Alhaji Jimoh Dojumo, confirmed the killings in Arimogija, adding that the governor had detailed some security operatives to enforce law and order in the community.

He said,

I have been there. The people were so bitter about the man and his son that were killed. As they saw us, they started protesting but I was able to calm them.

They said they were apprehensive of a particular helicopter that allegedly came to the bush. They were suspecting that the helicopter brought some Fulani to the place to attack them. But Mr Governor has sent some soldiers to patrol the community.

The Ondo State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, Mr. Tee-Leo Ikoro, is yet to comment on the matter.

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.