On Thursday, Gunmen invaded the palace of Oloto of Oto Awori Kingdom, Oba Josiah Aina, allegedly attacked guests and disrupted the celebration of his 15th coronation anniversary, a situation that led to the death of a yet-to-be-identified person.
Our Correspondent gathered that the celebration was ongoing when the feared-looking men, who were armed with weapons, stormed the community, and attacked and robbed residents of their valuables.
The Gunmen were said to have taken advantage of the tension created during the attack to invade the palace where the celebration was taking place.
During the invasion, the armed men reportedly attacked the monarch’s guests; vandalized property including vehicles, and burnt some shops within the vicinity.
It was learned that most guests scampered to safety, some others, who were unlucky, sustained varying degrees of injury and were rushed to nearby hospitals for treatment.
A combined team of military and police operatives was also sighted in the area. A resident who gave his name only as Sunday, for security reasons, said nobody expected the invasion, adding that the hoodlums burgled and looted shops in the community.
The Baale Ogbetedo of Oto Awori, Obanla Adesina, said when they got the information about the impending attack, relevant security agents were informed, and an appeal was made to prevent any form of mayhem.
Adesina said, “I called the council chairman to intervene over the incident and he promised to call for a security stakeholder meeting. But to our surprise, boys from the Ijanikin community suddenly invaded the ongoing ceremony.
“They attacked around 8.30 am with cutlasses, bottles, and guns. There were more than 400 boys. When they entered the palace, some vehicles were vandalized and the guests had to run for their lives. So that led to the invitation of the police. Some of our boys were also shot and stabbed.”
The Balogun of the kingdom, Rufus Ifatosin, said the attack was planned, adding that the hoodlums disrupted the coronation anniversary despite Aina giving them money.
