Owo massacre: AIG apologises to monarch, vows to nab perpetrators
Owo massacre: AIG apologises to monarch, vows to nab perpetrators
The new Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone 17, Yunus Akeera, has apologized to the Olowo of Owo land, Oba Ajibade Ogunoye, and the people of the community over the June 5, 2022 attack on a catholic church.
No fewer than 40 people were killed while many were injured by some suspected terrorists at St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, who attacked the church during Sunday service.
Speaking on Wednesday during a condolence visit to the monarch, Akeera who resumed duty on Monday maintained that the police will henceforth engage the community in order to prevent reoccurrence.
The AIG, who also visited the scene of the attack, noted that the police had been working tirelessly to unravel the facts surrounding the dastardly attack ever since it happened.
He said “Issues like this have never happened and people are wondering, why Owo? We must say we are sorry for what has happened.
“But as law officers, we are going to put our ears to the ground and we will leave no stone unturned to make sure those who are behind this wicked act will be apprehended and faced the law. This, we must assure you.
“We have come to the scene of the crime and from all indications the place is situated in the heart of town and any rational person will be wondering what could happen and our focus should be how to go about and round up those behind this incident so that they will be prosecuted.
“Furthermore, all the security architecture will be placed here so that such incidents will not repeat themselves anymore and other areas in the state. The focus is to give robust policing. We are going to engage with the community and we employed them to give us useful information and all hands must be on deck because security is everybody’s business.”
The police boss used the occasion to laud Governor Rotimi Akeredolu for the Executive Order signed to compel public and private institutions in the state to install Close Circuit Television in their facilities, stating that the move would enormously enhance the fight against crime by security agencies.
“The governor’s pronouncement is a welcome development. All over the world, that is the best practice. If every public places have CCTV installed in their environment, it will checkmate a lot of things. It will give adequate capturing of who and who goes in or goes out. It will also ease investigation. It is a positive development, I think the governor has done what is needed so that the entire state can move forward. I commend the governor for the progressive and proactive pronouncement,” he stated .
In his remarks, the Owo monarch tasked the police to expose those behind the attack. He lamented that police in Owo lacked operational vehicles as well as adequate personnel.
“One could not fathom the reason why those people could go to that extent. They are not Muslims and they are not Christians. As I often say, they are not human beings and they don’t worth human existence. I know that very soon, the full wrath of the law will catch up with them. I know that Nigeria Police is very professional and when they set out to do an assignment, the results will be so certain.
“The Nigeria Police have not only performed here, even when they are on international assignment. As you set out your aims and objective will be achieved. The major challenge facing police operations in Owo is the lack of vehicles and personnel. They don’t have vehicles to mobilise to crime scenes and for quick movement. Also, the number of personnel here is inadequate considering the fact that Owo is a big city.”
