Hundreds of aggrieved youths took to the streets of Ibadan on Wednesday to protest the killing of a 14-year-old boy, Peter Okafor, in the early hours of Wednesday around Uncle Joe area of Mokola in Ibadan by operatives of the State Security Network, codenamed Amotekun.
The victim, an apprentice with a printing press in Mokola, was allegedly shot dead by Amotekun, per NAN reports.
A similar incident was recorded in the Oke-Ado area of Ibadan on July 21 where two youths were allegedly killed by Amotekun Corps while celebrating the Eid-el Kabir festival, the state-owned newswire further reports.
A witness, who pleaded anonymity, told NAN that immediately the boy sighted the Amotekun operatives in the early hours of Wednesday patrolling the area, he started running to escape.
“I don’t know what he did to warrant his running, but they shot him in the head and he died instantly,” the witness said.
Immediately the information got to youths in the area, they mobilised themselves and started making bonfires on the road, thus causing traffic gridlock around Mokola area, the outlet said.
The protesters later moved to the state secretariat with the corpse of the victim and prevented both human and vehicular movements around the main gate.
Although the executive assistant on security to the governor, Sunday Odukoya, made frantic efforts to appease the protesters, they insisted on seeing Governor Seyi Makinde.
When contacted, the police spokesman in the state, Adewale Osifeso, said he was at the scene of the incident.
“I am at the scene of the incident at the moment now. I will reach out to you as soon as I get to the office, please,” Mr Osifeso told NAN.
The state commander of Amotekun, retired Colonel Olayinka Olayanju, declined to comment on the incident, but said: “We are on top of the incident.”
However, some anti-riot policemen have been deployed to the scene and patrolling major roads in the town to prevent a breakdown of law and order.
