No fewer than three persons were Sunday night murdered in the Mechanic Village area of Owerri, the Imo State capital following a bloody clash between rival cult gangs.
The victims who were killed with machete and other dangerous weapons were said to be members of the Aiye confraternity.
Over 15 persons including students in one of the higher institutions in the state have been killed in cult-related clashes in the state in the last one month.
According to an eyewitness account, the rampaging cultists invaded the community around 12.30am and laid ambush for their targets who were returning from an outing.
The source who didn’t want to be mentioned, said that they were armed with machetes, clubs and other dangerous weapons.
He disclosed that apart from those that were killed several other people who tried to rescue the victims from the assailants sustained machete wounds.
Meanwhile residents of Mechanic Village, one of the satellite towns around Owerri, have lamented the rate of cult related killings in the community.
They appealed to security agencies to track down the rampaging cultists who they said have turned their lives into nightmare.
According to one of the residents, who pleaded anonymity, “we now live in fear everyday; it is a very sad development most of the gruesome killings are carried out in the day time under the full glare of the parents of the victims. We want the government to come to our aid”.
However efforts to get the State Police Command to confirm the incident were not successful as repeated the State Police Public Relations Officer, Orlando Ikeokwu, a Superintendent of Police could not be reached.
