Commercial motor cycle operators, popularly known as okada riders, went on rampage on Wednesday in Akure, the Ondo State capital, following the killing of a colleague by a policeman.
The angry protesters invaded the police A Division blocked major roads in the city.
The mob gathered around the A Division entrance as police try to keep them off
A bus suspected to be a security vehicle had knocked down a motor bike conveying a cocoa merchant, in the morning, along Arakale, in Akure.
Both the bike rider and the merchant were said to have died on the spot, following which the youths in area, particularly operators of commercial motor cycle, became violent.
A policeman reportedly attached to a filling station in the area was said to have fired shots in the air to scare the protesters away, but misfired and killed another okada rider.
The policeman who fired the deadly shot was said to have escaped the A Division to rake refuge, but the irate youths and the riders pursued him and laid siege at the station.
The youths also set bonfires at the A Division and demanded that the policeman be released be released to them.
They also hauled stones into the station and barricaded major roads.
Policemen, on sighting the angry protesters, escaped from the division’s barracks along with their families to avert a repeat of the EndSARS experience.
Last year, the police divisional headquarters was burnt down protesters along with vehicles belonging to policemen.
While confirming the incident, the Ondo Police Public Relations Officer, Fumilayo Odunlami, said the situation has been put under control.
“There was an accident along Arakale where two persons were killed,” she said.
“One of our men while trying to rescue the driver of the car that killed an okada rider and a passenger was attacked and in the process, another okada rider was killed.
“The protesting riders mobilised to A Division to attack the place.”
