The Ogun State Police Command has condemned the jungle justice perpetrated on two suspected ritualists at the Oja Odan Divisional Police Headquarters.
This was contained in a statement issued by the command's Public Relations Officer in the state, Abimbola Oyeyemi.
On Saturday, the police arrested two suspects caught with human parts in Oja-Odan, Yewa-North local government area of the state, the statement said.
During interrogation, an angry mob invaded the police station, seized the suspects and set them ablaze.
Reacting, Oyeyemi sounded a note of warning against what he described as jungle justice on the suspects by the people in the state.
The statement read partly, “Following an unlawful killing and setting ablaze of two suspected ritualists in Oja-Odan area of Ogun state on Saturday 12th of February 2022, the Ogun state police command wishes to warn the general public that such a barbaric and unlawful action will no longer be tolerated.
“In the early hours of Saturday, 12th of February 2022, two suspected ritualists were arrested and brought to Oja-Odan divisional headquarters by some vigilant and law-abiding members of the public, with the allegation that a fresh human head concealed in a sack was seen with them.
“While the suspects were being interrogated in the station, some unscrupulous elements went and mobilised a large number of people who invaded the station aggressively, overwhelmed the police personnel on duty and subsequently hijacked the suspects, beat them to death and set their corpses ablaze.
“In view of the incident, the command wishes to sound a note of warning to those who are always in the habit of taking the law into their hands to desist from such uncivilised behaviour as the command will henceforth be dealing with whoever carried out such action in the most decisive manner.
“A suspect remains a suspect until he or she is convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction no matter how grievous the crime he is suspected to have committed might be.
“It is only the court that has the power to impose punishment on anyone found guilty of a crime, not an individual or group of people.”
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, has “ordered a full-scale investigation into the incident with a view to bringing to justice those who participated in carrying out the barbaric and unlawful killing of the suspects.”
“The CP, therefore, appealed to members of the public to have confidence in the nation’s criminal justice system and desist from self-help as such is alien to the law of the land,” Bankole added.
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