Operatives of the Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Team have gunned down the suspected leader of the militants that killed four policemen, a military Captain, and some civilians in the Yewa, Ikorodu area of Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the suspect, Endurance Ominisan, aka Mighty, was killed on Sunday during a shootout with the operatives at his girlfriend’s house on Joel Adebolu Street, Ibeshe, Ikorodu.
Our correspondent had reported that some policemen from the Owutu Police Division and some military officers, led by one Captain Mohammed, had responded to a distress call to rescue residents kidnapped by suspected militants.
However, while returning from the operation, the militants were said to have surrounded the operatives and opened fire on them.
Four policemen, identified as Inspector Iroagbalachi Godwin (aka Apostle), Inspector Pemi Francis, Sergeant Dembo Mamodu, and Sergeant Udoh Okoro; the military Captain, and two residents, were shot dead.
The IGP response team, led by ACP Abba Kyari, was said to have been deployed in the area to bring the killers to book.
PUNCH Metro learnt that since April 9, 2017, when the incident happened, the militants had refused to come out of their hideout.
A police source said Ominisan, however, sneaked out on Sunday to visit his girlfriend in a flat he rented for her in the Ibeshe area.
The source said the IGP team trailed him to the house and laid siege to it.
He said, “When he knew that the house had been surrounded, he ran to the roof and started shooting at the operatives. He released four bullets. He wanted to jump to the next house when the police replied to the gunfire and he was hit. He was brought down from the roof and taken to the Ikorodu General Hospital.”
The suspect, before his death, allegedly confessed to be the leader of the team that killed the policemen and the military officer.
He was also said to have admitted to being among those that kidnapped a monarch, the Oniba of Ibaland, Oba Goriola Oseni, and the schoolgirls from the Turkish International Colleges, among other kidnappings in Lagos and Ogun states.
The police were said to have recovered a Turkish Fatih 13 Pistol from the Arogbo, Ondo State indigene, with four expended bullets and five live ammunition.
Another source said Ominisan’s girlfriend told detectives that she was not aware he was a kidnapper.
“She said she thought he was just a pipeline vandal and since they had been granted amnesty, she believed he had changed his ways.
“The girl is from Benue State and she said she had never visited his village. She was later released on bail,” he added.
PUNCH Metro gathered that information from some previously apprehended militants, including Ominisan, revealed that they operated in small units and were spread in different parts of Lagos and Ogun states.
A source said the militants confessed that none of their members died during the last bombardment of the creeks.
He said, “The militants that had been arrested before now said none of their men died during the aerial bombardment of the creeks. They said they were aware of the attack before it happened and most of them had fled those places.
“They said after the escape, they divided into groups of 20s and 30s, with each unit headed by a leader.
“They said they were no longer meeting in large numbers and in one place like before. What they do now is to plot their kidnap attacks based on their groups.
“This is the reason it is not advisable to bombard the creeks because the militants are now in different places.”
The Nigeria Police Force spokesperson, Jimoh Moshood, confirmed the killing of Ominisan, adding that efforts were ongoing to flush out the militants from the creeks.
He noted that the police would stop at nothing to ensure the death of the slain policemen and military officer was not in vain.
SOURCE – PUNCH
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