Two Killed, Three Officers Injured as Gunmen Attack Police Patrol in Osun

Osun State Commissioner of Police, CP Ibrahim Zungura

Two Killed, Three Officers Injured as Gunmen Attack Police Patrol in Osun

Two civilians have been killed while two police officers sustained serious injuries after suspected political thugs attacked a police patrol team along the Ibadan-Ife Expressway in Osun State, triggering a war of words between political parties over the violence.

The attack occurred at approximately 11:00 a.m. on Monday when officers from the Ikire Divisional Police Headquarters, accompanied by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), responded to a distress call over the alleged abduction of a man identified simply as Sunkanmi. According to the Osun State Police Command Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, the officers came under sudden gunfire from unidentified hoodlums shortly after arriving at the location. The assailants reportedly opened fire on the officers while they were inside their operational vehicle and succeeded in dispossessing them of an AK-47 service rifle. The hoodlums allegedly used the stolen rifle to shoot indiscriminately, killing two civilians in the process.

The victims were identified as 49-year-old Nurení Sobowale from Odeda Area of Abeokuta and 43-year-old Saheed Akinrole of Adeagbo Compound, Ikire. Two police officers also sustained serious injuries during the attack and were initially taken to a nearby hospital for emergency treatment before being transferred to the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, for further medical attention. The attackers reportedly drove away in the police patrol vehicle but later abandoned it. The vehicle was subsequently recovered with several bullet holes and a shattered windscreen. Nine spent ammunition shells were recovered at the scene and secured for forensic analysis, according to the police. The remains of the two victims were deposited at the Oluyoro Catholic Mortuary, while their families were informed of their deaths.

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The incident has triggered a war of words between political parties in the state. The All Progressives Congress (APC) accused Governor Ademola Adeleke of failing to protect residents, alleging that armed thugs linked to the Accord Party were responsible for the attack. In a statement, the Osun APC Media Cluster coordinator, Oluwafunsho Fagbohungbe, said: “This was not a mere street brawl. It was a calculated, armed attack on public safety and constitutional authority. When the Divisional Police Officer of the Irewole Police Division responded to a distress call after an APC member was abducted and taken to a motor park for torture, these hoodlums turned their weapons on law enforcement. Officers were assaulted, and service rifles were snatched from police personnel.” The APC also called on the Inspector‑General of Police to deploy maximum force to reclaim Ikire, secure all local government secretariats, and recover all stolen police weapons. It further alleged that the violence was coordinated and sponsored by Senator Lere Oyewumi, the Deputy Senate Minority Leader.

However, the Accord Party rejected the APC’s account and blamed the incident on the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Irewole Division, Mr Bamidele Olatona. The state Chairman of the party, Mr Victor Akande, alleged that the DPO opened fire at the motor park without provocation. “Eyewitness accounts confirm that the Divisional Police Officer of Irewole Division, Mr Bamidele Olatona, personally stormed the public garage and opened fire sporadically into a crowd of unarmed civilians,” Akande said. He denied that there was any attempt by a group to take over the motor park, insisting that normal activities were ongoing before the incident.

While police confirmed two deaths, the APC claimed that five people—three commercial drivers and two passers‑by—were killed in the melee. The Coalition of Civil Society Organisations for Good Governance also alleged that five people were killed, while the Ikire Concerned Youths put the death toll at two, including a commercial bus driver and a passenger. These conflicting accounts could not be independently verified. The violence reportedly erupted over an alleged attempt to take control of the Naira and Kobo Motor Park in Ikire, with rival groups of commercial transport workers allegedly aligned with different political parties. Sources said drivers loyal to one party had been in control of the park until drivers from another party arrived and attempted to take over the facility.

Osun State Commissioner of Police, CP Ibrahim Zungura, who visited the scene shortly after assuming duty, ordered a comprehensive investigation into the attack. He directed the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the State Criminal Investigation Department to lead the probe and ordered the immediate deployment of tactical and intelligence personnel to the area to identify, track, and arrest those responsible. The command condemned the attack and the killing of the two civilians, urging residents along the affected axis to remain calm and vigilant. It also appealed to members of the public with useful information about the attackers to report to the nearest police station. The police assured residents that security operations had been intensified along the Ibadan-Ife Expressway and other parts of the state to restore normalcy and prevent further attacks.