Five persons have been feared killed in a renewed cult war that erupted over the weekend in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital.
The clash was between two rival cult groups identified as the Bobos and Greenlanders, with killings recorded in Agudama, Obele, Imgbi, Ovom and behind St. Peters areas of the state capital.
Sources said the violence was triggered by the killing of a suspected member of the Greenlanders who was attacked with machetes and beheaded.
A reprisal attack in Agudama followed, where a young man was shot in the buttocks. He survived but was left in critical condition. Three other deaths were recorded in Imgbi, Ovom and Obele, forcing several suspected cultists to flee their areas for fear of arrest and reprisal.
The development has shattered the peace accord earlier brokered between cult groups by the Bayelsa State Police Command.
Confirming the development, Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Musa Mohammed, said on Tuesday that suspects have been arrested and normalcy restored.
Meanwhile, Commissioner of Police, CP Ajao Saka Adewale, has ordered intensified operations against cultism and cult-related violence across the state, directing Divisional Police Officers and tactical commanders to increase patrols in vulnerable areas, act on credible intelligence about planned clashes, initiation ceremonies and recruitment, and ensure no sacred cow.
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