Gunmen assassinate Ogun chief

Some unidentified gunmen on Wednesday assassinated an Egba Chief, Moses Oyebade.

He was killedn his house at Ikanna compound in the Ago-Oba area of the Abeokuta South Local Government Area of Ogun State.

The victim, who was the Oluwo of Ikanna, was said to have been shot by his assailants while sleeping in his bedroom at about 12am on Wednesday.

The gunmen were said to have shot at him through the window of the room.

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It was gathered that Oyebade, who marked his 75th birthday in Lagos two weeks ago, was the only occupant at the time of the incident.

Other chiefs in the community later reported the incident at the Ibara Police Station, Abeokuta.

The police came down to the house and forced the door to Oyebade’s house open and took his corpse to a mortuary in the area.

The first son of the deceased, Mr. Oluyemi Oyebade, said he got the news of his father’s death through a telephone call from his brother.

He said he had earlier been informed that some unknown persons were trailing his father.

He added that some gunmen had on two occasions, visited the house but they could not gain access into the building. He said their inability to gain entrance into the building during their two attempts was the reason his father was shot through the window the third time.

He said, “My father was sleeping in his bedroom. The bed is close to the window. As the glass was broken, he woke up to see what happened. He took his torch to see who was there.

“That was how he was shot. The first gunshot hit him in the hand. They shot him again. They shot him three times.”

Oluyemi expressed displeasure that none of his father’s neighbours came out after the gunmen had left to assist his father.

He said he believed his father might not have died if he had been quickly taken to a hospital.

He said, “Nobody came to his aid. The neighbours could have assisted him, but they pretended as if they did not know what happened.”

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, confirmed the incident, adding that the assailants left a note at the victim’s residence.

He said, “Some men went to the house of Apena of Ikanna, Chief Moses Oyebade, broke his window and shot him at 12am on Wednesday.

“We have examined the place and recovered a note which contained a message written in both English and Yoruba languages.

“The note read thus, ‘Useless man, Onidokudo (promiscuous)’. In our preliminary investigation, it could be a case of assassination. We will invite some people for interrogation.

“The state Police Commissioner, Valentine Ntomchukwu, has directed that the case be transferred to the Department of Criminal Investigation. The perpetrators will not go scot- free.”