There was pandemonium in the ancient city of Iwo, in Osun State, on Monday, as aggrieved indigenes stormed the palace of Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi, to prevent the handing over of apprehended kidnapper to the police.
It was reliably gathered that the suspected female abductor was apprehended by some vigilant people in the town, while attempting to kidnap a young child.
Report has it that after the suspected kidnapper was caught, the crowd, who had converged to catch a glimpse of her arrest moved enmasse to the palace of Oba Akanbi with some irate youths who effected her arrest.
According to the source, who pleaded anonymity, the intention of the irate youths was to show the apprehended kidnapper to the monarch before lynching her or carry out their jungle justice.
However, trouble ensued when the monarch chose not to release the suspected kidnapper to the enraged youths, but called the Police to hand her over for proper administration of justice.
The development irked the irate youths and other protesters, who set up bonfire at the frontage of Oluwo’s palace to prevent the Police from taking the suspected kidnapper away.
Efforts by Oba Akanbi to calm down the irate youths by explaining to them the need to hand over the suspect to the Police failed to yield results as they made bonfire to barricade the main entrance to the palace, chanting war songs to denounce the action monarch’s action.
The Police team that came to take the suspected kidnapper away could not exit the palace due to the growing crowd of protesters, a development which compelled them to call for reinforcement that came to disperse the irate youths with tear gas.
The State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Femi Oyeleye, later led his men to the scene before normalcy could be restored in the town.
-Emmanuel Ikechukwu
