The Niger State Police Command has confirmed the arrest of six suspects who are allegedly connected to youth restiveness that led to the deaths of two persons in Maitunbi community, Minna, the state capital.
The incident, OsunDailyNG learnt, occurred on Friday evening at an illegal mining site in Maitumbi, along the axis of the Julius Berger Quarry site, where hooligans engaged themselves in a fight with dangerous weapons.
The victims killed were reportedly a seven-year-old child and a 20-year-old whose father died in March.
Eyewitnesses told OsunDailyNG that the youth gathered in large numbers under the guise of celebrating Sallah and unleashed terror on the community on Friday evening and Saturday.
Most of the miscreants, reportedly acting under the influence of drugs, wielded dangerous weapons such as knives and daggers that they used to fight themselves, leading to the deaths of two persons.
The restive youths also attacked people in the area and robbed them of their valuables, such as money and mobile phones.
One of the victims, Mrs. Agnes Akin, who narrated her ordeal to OsunDailyNG, said: “I parked my vehicle at about 4 pm alongside other cars of our team and we climbed the Maitunbi Mountain for a two-hour prayer. While there, the rampaging youths came and destroyed my vehicle. We watched them as they destroyed the tyres and broke the glasses, but we were advised not to come down from the mountain because they could descend on us.
“We watched them kill two persons and fear gripped everyone in the area. We were supposed to conclude our prayers and leave the mountain at 6 pm, but I ended up getting home at 9 pm because of the disorder and tension in the area.”
She added: “Even this Saturday, when I went to pick up my vehicle, we saw them gathering and we had to quickly move out of the area.”
A statement signed by the Niger State Police Command Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, said patrol teams responded immediately after the command got information on development in the area.
Confirming the arrest of six suspects, he said the upheaval led to the deaths of two person and efforts are ongoing to arrest the fleeing miscreants.
