The Osun State Police Command has declared a factional chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Nurudeen Alowonle, wanted over the killing of transport union figure Olalekan Oyeyemi, popularly known as Emir.
The Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Zungura, announced this on Monday while parading suspects arrested for various offences at the command headquarters in Osogbo.
He said six suspects had been arrested in connection with Emir’s killing at a motor park in Ile-Ife on September 13, while efforts were ongoing to apprehend Alowonle and another NURTW chief, Ojo Adeyemi, popularly known as Sibi.
According to the police commissioner, preliminary investigations and statements obtained from some suspects allegedly linked the two men to the incident. The allegations have not been established in court.
Among those arrested was Hammed Olalekan Dauda, also known as Jagaban, who was allegedly found with a locally made, cut-to-size firearm.
Zungura said Dauda reportedly told investigators that Alowonle gave him the weapon. The police also arrested Waliyu Adejare, identified as Alowonle’s personal assistant, in connection with the killing.
The commissioner named the suspects in custody as Tijani Ismail, Akinsola Ekundayo, Sijuade Moruf, Ayeni Adegbola, Hammed Dada and Waliyu Adejare.
He said the command was intensifying efforts to arrest the two NURTW chiefs and other suspects still at large.
In a separate case, the police arrested six suspects over an alleged robbery involving a Bajaj Boxer motorcycle along the Ile-Ife–Ibadan Expressway.
The suspects were identified as Olaiya Sunday, 27; Akintunde Mariam, 28; Agoro Kudus, 27; Timileyin Idowu, 23; Adekunle Ibrahim, 30; and Temitope Opeyemi, 29.
Zungura said the suspects allegedly robbed a commuter of the motorcycle, adding that five mobile phones were recovered as exhibits.
The commissioner also announced the arrest of Oniyefa Olayemi in connection with the killing of four people during a clash between rival groups at Alapa Village, Toro Road, Ile-Ife.
The deceased were identified as Toyin Olagbaju, Emmanuel Agunbiade, Akeem and Ademola, popularly known as Small.
Zungura said the police received a report on October 5 that armed men had invaded Alapa Village between October 4 and 5, firing shots and killing Olagbaju, a 40-year-old woman.
He said preliminary findings suggested that the violence arose from a dispute between two rival groups over control of a large cocoa farm in the village. One alleged leader, Awosunle Tosin, was still at large, according to the police.
Detectives who visited the scene recovered two dane guns, an axe, spent cartridges and ammunition shells believed to be from AK-47, LAR and other assault rifles, as well as locally made charms.
Olayemi was assisting investigators, the commissioner said.
The police urged residents to continue providing information to support efforts to tackle crime across the state.
The development follows an earlier statement by the Osun Amotekun Corps that it had handed over four of its operatives to the police to assist investigations into Emir’s death.
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