Ilorin mayhem: Civil defence corps arrests 16 suspects

SIXTEEN people were arrested by men of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Ilorin on Wednesday as truck drivers and butchers engaged in a bloody fight at the popular Mandate Market located at Adewole area of the metropolis.

The conflict, which left two personnel of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), who had gone to the scene to quell the pandemonium, wounded, saw one of the security men stabbed on his hand.

The Nigerian Tribune gathered that the clash began when butchers in the market protested against the way some trucks were parked, obstructing their customers from accessing them.

During the face-off, the truck drivers were alleged to have drawn out their knives and attacked a butcher while associates of the victim also rose to his defence.

One of the traders in the market, who said that she narrowly escaped being a victim in the melee, said that “all hell was let loose as the butchers poised to fight the truck drivers for stabbing their colleague. It was feared at a point that the fight would escalate into an ethnic conflict as most of the truck drivers are from the north while the butchers are mainly Yorubas”.

With the ensuing pandemonium, market stalls and shops were hurriedly closed, as motorists plying the route stayed back until normalcy was returned to the area.

Although initial reports claimed that one life was lost to the mayhem, however, security sources later denied the report.

It was also gathered that situation was brought under control by the arrival of men of the NSCDC who began to shoot into the air to scare the warring groups. They were said to have helped several women trapped between the fighting groups to escape and it was in the process that two of them were injured.

Confirming the development, the public relations officer (PRO) of the corps in the state, Mr Henry Bilesanmi, said that 16 suspects had been nabbed in connection with the mayhem.

“As I am talking with you I have just returned from the hospital to see our wounded men”, he said and assured that the corps would continue to work for the peace and stability of the state.