The Ogun State Police Command has said no fewer than 30 individuals arrested during a raid on an alleged cult initiation gathering in Isara-Remo will face prosecution after ongoing investigations are concluded.
The suspects were apprehended by operatives of the Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU) working alongside detectives from the Isara Area Command and Isara Division following intelligence reports about a suspected unlawful assembly in the community.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, said the operation was carried out around 4 p.m. on June 16 after security agencies received credible information indicating that a group of persons had gathered at an unfinished building in Isara-Remo.
According to the police, the gathering was allegedly linked to cult-related initiation activities and involved meetings, chanting and the consumption of alcoholic beverages.
Babaseyi explained that upon receiving the intelligence, the Commander of the VCRU coordinated a joint operation involving personnel from the VCRU, Isara Area Command and Isara Division.
The team subsequently stormed the location, dispersed the assembly and arrested 30 suspects in what the command described as a coordinated tactical intervention.
Those arrested were identified as Muiz Olawale, Adeniji Akinwale, Ajayi Victor, Damilola Oluwasegun, Adewale Olayemi, Aminu Rahmon, Olodudu Ademola, Matthew Imoleayo, Adenle Habeb, Lekan Qudus, Olamilekan Ayanleke and Adegbasa Ezekiel.
Others include Ibukun Adeniyi, Abiodun Babatunde, Oshofolahan Michael, Salau Adedeji, Benjamin Kehinde, Magnus Elijah, Oluwadamilare Samson, Oyebowale Ojutona, Abiodun Makanjuola, Idowu Toheeb, Olamide Sunday, Malik Also, Abdullahi Damilola, Israel Ayomikun, Oyeledun Ezekiel, Adelabu Imoleayo, Ajayi Oluwasegun and Olaawun Faith.
The police also recovered four vehicles allegedly abandoned by other suspects who escaped during the operation.
Items seized at the scene included a jackknife, a local drum, a sekere and bottles suspected to have been used for alcohol consumption during the gathering.
“Four vehicles allegedly abandoned during the attempted escape were recovered at the scene, alongside exhibits including one jackknife, one local drum, one sekere and bottles suspected to have been used for alcohol consumption during the illegal assembly,” Babaseyi stated.
The command disclosed that all arrested suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Eleweran, Abeokuta, for further investigation.
Babaseyi said the suspects would be charged in court once investigations are completed, adding that efforts were underway to track down and arrest other individuals who fled the scene.
Reacting to the operation, the Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, Bode Ojajuni, praised the officers involved and reiterated the command’s commitment to tackling cultism and related criminal activities across the state.
According to the police chief, the raid reflects the command’s intelligence-driven policing approach and its determination to prevent violent crime and unlawful gatherings.
He stressed that cult-related activities would not be tolerated in any part of Ogun State.
