A middle aged man was killed on Friday during an attempted arrest by police operatives at the popular Oja-Oba Market in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.
Eyewitnesses said activities in the market and surrounding areas were abruptly disrupted. Traders hastily shut their stalls while others ran to safer locations as tension spread across the market.
Security personnel stationed in the area later intervened to restore order and reportedly pursued some suspects believed to have been involved in the confrontation.
A police source who confirmed the incident to journalists said the deceased was a suspected cult member who confronted officers during an attempted arrest.
According to the source, the suspect allegedly drew a firearm and pointed it at one of the officers.
āThe incident involved a cult member who, at the point of arrest, brought out his gun and pointed it at a police officer. He was eventually neutralised by the operatives, while his gun and some local charms were recovered from him,ā the source said.
The development comes amid ongoing efforts by the Kwara State Police Command to clamp down on cult-related activities across Ilorin and other parts of the state.
Earlier, the state Commissioner of Police, Adekimi Ojo, announced the arrest of several suspected members of secret cult groups across the metropolis following an intensive investigation into cult activities.
According to the police commissioner, the investigation was launched after a fatal cult-related incident on January 6, 2026, in front of Imam Filling Station in the Kulende area of Ilorin, where a 28-year-old man, Victor Mathew Nwachukwu, was shot dead by suspected cultists.
Man killed during suspected cult clash at Ilorin market
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