Police arrest three over Kwara poly student’s murder

The Kwara State Police Command has arrested three suspected members of the Eiye Confraternity over the alleged abduction and killing of a student of Kwara State Polytechnic, while launching a manhunt for nine other suspected members of the gang.

The suspects were apprehended after weeks of investigation by operatives of the Command’s Violent Crime Response Unit, who carried out coordinated raids on identified cult hideouts across Ilorin metropolis on June 29.

The arrested suspects were identified as Adeoye Babatunde Alimi, 23, popularly known as “Solar”; Bernard Kayode, 25, alias “KK”; and Owoyemi Bashiru, 27, also known as “GDP.”

According to the police, the trio is linked to the disappearance of 29-year-old Sodiq Durodola Olaniyi, an indigene of Oyo State and a student of Kwara State Polytechnic, who had been missing since June 4.

Confirming the arrests in a statement, the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, said investigations revealed that the suspects belonged to a violent cult group allegedly responsible for abducting the student.

She disclosed that the suspects confessed during interrogation that the victim was killed after he was abducted.

Further investigations, according to the police, showed that the gang comprises 12 members, with nine suspects still on the run.

The command said tactical operations had been intensified to apprehend the fleeing suspects, dismantle the cult network and recover the victim’s body.

Ejire-Adeyemi added that the suspects in custody were providing investigators with useful information on other violent crimes allegedly committed by the group within Ilorin metropolis.

The police assured residents that investigations were ongoing and pledged to ensure that all those connected with the crime are arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the law.